Messin' with the Kid
by bdavis9
Summary: In the 3rd and final installment of the series, Nat and Rosalina are finally happily married, raising their son Chris in the city with the loving help from their friends. But just as Nat and Alex are to leave for a nationwide tour, the unthinkable happens. Will Nat, Rosalina, and the rest of the gang be able to make it through yet another challenging time?
1. Chapter 1

yay for finally starting this new story! it picks up 4 years after Til Death Do Us Part. hope you all like it.

**Chapter 1:**

"Mommy!" A 4-year old Christopher Wolff yelled as he ran out of his preschool classroom at Amigos, to where his mom, Rosalina, was waiting for him.

"Hi baby," She scooped him up in her arms and kissed his forehead, pressing back his curly brown hair, something he had inherited from his uncle. "Did you have a good day at school?"

"It was alright, I played the drums in music class!" Chris exclaimed. "Everyone told me I was super good."

"Now that's what I like to hear, I'm sure your Uncle Al will love that," Rosalina tousled his hair. "Now let's get home, we've got a big weekend ahead of us."

"So what does a ring bearer actually do?" Chris asked his mother as they walked hand in hand back to their apartment.

"You are going to walk down the aisle right before mommy and daddy walk down," Rosalina explained. "And then you are going to give the rings to Uncle Thomas when he asks you for them."

"Do you remember your wedding to Daddy?" Chris looked up at his mom as they entered the apartment building.

"I sure do, it was the best day of my life," Rosalina smiled. "That is until you were born."

"I am pretty cool," Chris commented, making Rosalina laugh as she pushed open the apartment door. Nat was standing in the kitchen in front of the fridge and turned when the door opened. "Daddy!"

"Hey buddy," Nat wrapped his arms around his son's frame, throwing him over his shoulder. "Are you ready to be the best ring bearer to ever bear rings?"

"I don't know what that means," Chris admitted, making his parents both laugh. "Do you remember the day you married Mommy?"

"Of course, she looked like a real live princess!" Nat exclaimed, putting his arm around his wife and kissing her. "She still looks like a princess."

"Yeah Mommy is pretty, but I think Auntie Kris is going to look super pretty when she marries Uncle Thomas," Chris said. The front door opened with Alex and Thomas entered the apartment.

"I see little shoes by the door, where is my nephew?" Alex called from the doorway. "CAW, CAW!"

"I'm right here Uncle Al!" Chris took off running towards Alex when he heard his special nickname his godfather had given him, his initials as a bird call. Alex knelt down to the young boy's level and the two did their super-secret handshake. "I played the drums at school today!"

"Atta boy! Being the drummer of the band is way cooler than the lead singer," Alex winked, tossing shade towards his big brother. "You are going to get all the ladies at the wedding this weekend."

"Will there be any hot chicks, Uncle Thomas?" Chris looked up at Thomas, who smiled and tousled his hair.

"Yeah there will be, I'm marrying her, you dork." Thomas chuckled. "Speaking of that, the pleasant bride is requesting her loyal BFF's presence."

"What's with the tone, Tom?" Rosalina asked, earning her a glare from him. "She's getting married tomorrow, you jackass! She has the right to be a little stressed."

"What's a jackass?" Chris looked up at his uncles, making Alex and Thomas both laugh.

"Don't repeat that, ever! You hear me?" Rosalina demanded, pointing at her young son.

"I thought we were watching our potty mouths?" Nat smirked at his wife.

"Oh shut up," Rosalina hit his chest. "Come on buddy; let's go see if we can calm down Auntie Kris. Oh and boys, make sure you pick up…"

"David, Qaasim, and the girls from the airport, we got it." Nat held up a thumbs up to his wife. "I've got it handled."

"Thanks babe, I love you!" Rosalina grabbed her son's hand and the two rushed out the door, walking towards Thomas and Kristina's apartment. She pushed the door open and let her son enter first. "Kris!"

"Oh thank god, I'm having a shitt…oh there's my boy!" Kristina emerged from her bedroom in her wedding dress, stopping herself from swearing when she saw her godson was in the room. "What's up, little man?"

"You look like Cinderella!" Chris gasped, taking in seeing his godmother in her wedding dress. "But you already lost both your shoes."

"They're in my bedroom, how about you go get them for me?" Kristina suggested. The boy took off running into the bedroom.

"You are the perfect bride," Rosalina gushed.

"I am freaking out, is this really the right move?" Kristina asked her best friend in confidence.

"Come on Kris, he's the one for you. If he wasn't the one, he would have ditched you a long time ago," Rosalina laughed slightly, making Kristina smile. "It's like me and Nat."

"I don't think tomorrow could be anywhere close to perfect as your wedding," Kristina said.

"Oh with my husband getting shot and me finding out I'm pregnant, sounds very perfect," Rosalina winked.

"I just meant everything before that, everything I planned of course," Kristina teased as Chris came running out of the bedroom with Kristina's shoes. "Thank you handsome."

"You look very pretty Auntie Kris," Chris told his aunt as he leaned up against his mom's leg. "Did Mommy look that pretty when she married Daddy?"

"She sure did kiddo," Kristina smiled at Rosalina. "Are you excited to see your uncles later today?"

"Yes, I hope they bring me presents," Chris stated, making Kristina laugh.

"Baby your uncle's do not have to bring you presents; their coming to visit you should be enough of a present!" Rosalina told her son, tousling his curly locks.

"They'll bring me presents, they always do." Chris looked up at his mom with a grin that reminded her of his father's. "They love me."

"Don't we all," Kristina grinned.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Where are they?" Chris groaned impatiently, squirming around in Rosalina's lap as they, along with Kristina, sat at the restaurant where the rehearsal dinner was being held.

"Uncle Thomas just texted me that they're almost here, the plane got in late bud," Kristina told him, pulling out a dollar from her purse. "Here, go play some games."

"You're the best aunt ever!" Chris grinned, throwing his arms around her and running off to the arcade connected to the restaurant.

"You spoil him way too much," Rosalina shook her head with a smile.

"Well how else am I going to be his favorite," Kristina winked. "So, how's he taking the fact that Nat and Alex are going to be gone all summer?"

"He hasn't really said much but we're gonna have to talk to him tonight because the tour starts in 2 days." Rosalina sighed, referring to Nat and Alex's summer tour across the country. They had finally dropped their album the previous year and had enough success to get them a huge tour. "It'll be a change because Chris has never gone longer than a few days without seeing either of them."

"And how are you taking it? You know, not being able to see Nat for weeks on weeks end?" Kristina asked, taking a sip of her wine.

"We don't do all that great with the distance so I'm a little worried but I'm hoping that having Chris will make it easier for us to stay strong." Rosalina confessed. "But we're planning on going to visit them throughout the summer and we're going for the week long vacation in both New Orleans and LA to see David and Qaasim. Hopefully it doesn't hurt Chris too much. I just wish you didn't have to go straight onto the tour after your honeymoon."

"Me too but it's all part of the job," Kristina said, smiling at the sight of her fiancé walking in the restaurant. Thomas's hair was buzzed short, like it had been since high school, and he was wearing a shirt and tie which Kristina knew he hated but loved that he did it for her. He was laughing along with David and Qaasim, who were dressed just the same. Victoria and Grace followed behind them, talking with Nat and Alex. They hadn't seen them since New Year's and things were always better when the gang was all together.

"There's the beautiful bride," Grace smiled, wrapping his arms around Kristina and kissing her cheek.

"I can't believe old Tommy boy is getting married," Qaasim joked, patting his friend's back as he waited to hug Kristina.

"Where's the munchkin?" Victoria asked as she enthusiastically hugged Rosalina.

"There's my man!" David grinned as Chris came running out of the arcade at the sight of his aunts and uncles. He lifted Chris into his arms and hugged him tightly. "I've missed you kid."

"Did you bring presents?" Chris asked his uncle with excitement.

"Give your Uncle Qaasim a hug and you will see," Qaasim teased, grabbing the boy from David's arms and throwing him over this shoulder. "Hey while your down there, reach in my pocket. I think there's a little something with your name on it."

"What's this?" Chris pulled an envelope out of Qaasim's back pocket that was labeled "The Coolest Nephew in all the lands." Chris ripped it open and found a ticket. "Disneyland?!"

"When you come visit LA at the end of the summer, we are all going to Disney!" Victoria told him, tousling his hair.

"No way!" Chris exclaimed. "See, I told you mama. They always bring me presents."

"I guess you were right, son." Rosalina smiled, leaning into Nat's side.

"Whoa Disneyland?" Cooper asked as he and Patty joined the group. "I'm so snagging that ticket."

"You can get your own ticket Uncle Coop, this one's all mine!" Chris grinned proudly.

Later that night…

"How'd we get so lucky?" Rosalina whispered to Nat as the two of them were watching Chris sleep from the doorway of his bedroom. His suit for tomorrow was hanging from this closet with his Disneyland ticket sitting on his nightstand.

"Good things happen to good people, right?" Nat smirked, putting his arm around his wife and leading her down the hall and into their bedroom, stepping over the suitcases of David, Qaasim, and the girls who were all staying with them.

"I feel like we are growing out of this apartment," Rosalina sighed, kicking Chris's soccer ball to the end of the hall, hearing it bounce down the stairs.

"We will get a house one day, I promise you that." Nat said as they entered the bedroom and crawled into bed. Rosalina nestled up against Nat's bare chest.

"After the tour?" Rosalina suggested.

"I'll see what I can do," Nat replied, playing with the tips of her hair.

"Alright," Rosalina slightly sighed, trying not to show her obvious disappointment.

"I know what you're thinking, the tour is only a few months and it'll fly by," Nat told her. She looked up at him with a confused look. "All these years and you don't think I know how you are by now?"

"I just wish I didn't have to teach summer school this summer, I want to be with you," Rosalina complained.

"Are you worried about the distance?" Nat asked her. "Why'd I even bother asking? Of course you are."

"Stop reading my mind!" Rosalina exclaimed, hitting his chest.

"We'll make it through the summer and hopefully when I come home to you and our amazing son, we will buy your dream house. And maybe work on getting Chris a new brother or sister." Nat said the last sentence quickly, avoiding the glance of his wife.

"Are you serious?" Rosalina squealed. Nat smiled at her and held her tighter to his chest.

"I want a little girl, just like her mom," Nat confessed, planting a kiss on Rosalina's lips.

"I'm so thankful I have you in my life, Nat Wolff." Rosalina smiled. "I can't believe it's already been 4 years since I married you."

"You know what else I cannot believe? That Kris and Tom are getting married tomorrow," Nat laughed. "I could never have called that one back when we were in high school."

"It's a good life we have, with the best people," Rosalina lazily smiled, closing her eyes and leaning into Nat.

"No kidding, our son got tickets to Disneyland today," Nat chuckled, pulling his wife close and kissing her head before cuddling up to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Where the hell is Rosalina?!" Kristina sighed, glancing around at the rest of her bridesmaids, who were all dressed in yellow dresses.

"She's just running late Kris," Juanita tried to comfort her.

"It's my wedding day and I'm freaking out and I need my best friend to tell me it'll be okay," Kristina complained, locking herself in the bathroom.

"What are we going to do?" Grace asked the other girls in the room. "We need to calm her down."

"She just needs one thing and we're not it," Patty smiled slightly. "Rosalina will be here soon and Kristina will be just fine."

"Ugh sorry I'm late," Rosalina burst into the room, dressed in her bridesmaid dress with her long hair curled down her back. She was still wearing her glasses that she always wore in the morning. "Where's Kris?"

"Mental breakdown in the bathroom," Victoria pointed towards the door. Rosalina's eyes turned worried and she entered the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.

"I'm so sorry I'm late. Chris was not cooperating today and the lady that did my hair took forever!" Rosalina rambled. Kristina turned to face her, tears in her eyes. "No no no, no ruining the wedding makeup! What's wrong? Come on, talk to me."

"I thought you weren't going to show up," Kristina admitted.

"Awh come on Kris, it's my best friend's wedding day, the only way I'd miss this is if I was dead," Rosalina laughed, putting her hand on Kristina's arm.

"Don't say that," Kristina told her. "Let's remember your track record at weddings."

"Sorry, sorry," Rosalina smiled. "You look beautiful. But I think you're missing one thing."

"I thought you forgot it," Kristina watched as Rosalina pulled the necklace out of her purse.

"How could I forget our family heirloom?" Rosalina winked, motioning for Kristina to turn around. She put the necklace around her neck and they both smiled in the mirror. "Chris was right, you look like Cinderella."

"I'm ready for this, right?" Kristina asked Rosalina for reassurance. Rosalina turned her around to face her.

"More than ready," Rosalina smiled, putting her hand on Kristina's cheek. "You look amazing."

"Mommy, are you ready?" Chris pushed open the door to the bathroom with Nat following behind him. They were both dressed in black suits with yellow vest and ties. His eyes grew wide when he saw his aunt in her wedding dress. "Whoa."

"You look awfully handsome there, godson," Kristina grinned, bending down to peck the top of his head with a kiss.

"Sorry, he was getting a little antsy waiting," Nat apologized, kissing his wife. "Man, i never thought Thomas would land a girl like you, Kris. You look beautiful."

"But not as good as Momma looked when you married her, right Dad?" Chris looked up at his father waiting for an answer. Rosalina did the same, expecting her husband to reply faster than he was.

"Of course, son. Your mom is the most beautiful girl in the world to me," Nat beamed, putting his arm proudly around his wife as his son leaned into his side. "We are all ready to go if you ladies are."

"How's Thomas?" Kristina asked. "Is he freaking out?"

"Surprisingly no, this is the most calm i think i've ever seen him," Nat laughed. "Is that the answer you wanted?"

"That was perfect,"

Later that night…

"This song goes out to the happy couple, we love you Thomas and Kristina!" Alex said into the microphone later that night at the reception. "This one is Thump Thump Thump."

"Will you come dance with me, baby?" Rosalina begged her son, who was laid out across two chairs at the head table. "I am all lonely because your father is performing, i'd love some company from a big boy like you."

"I don't want to," Chris pouted, rolling over on his stomach. His face was bright red from running around all night and he had stripped down to his button up and his paints, with no shoes. Rosalina pushed his hair out of his face and started to run her nails up and down his back.

"Please?" Rosalina pleaded, getting really close to his face and peppering it with kisses. She then started to tickle his stomach, making him squirm. "I'll tickle you til you do it."

"Fine," Chris exclaimed, only to get his mom to stop the tickling. Rosalina smiled and took him into her arms, carrying him to towards the dance floor. She started to sway to the music as Chris leaned his head on her shoulder.

"You looked very grown up today, buddy," Rosalina told him, making the boy smile slightly. "Your dad and I were very proud of how you walked down the aisle and held onto the rings."

"That's because Uncle Thomas told me the monsters under my bed were going to get me if anything happened to the rings," Chris admitted.

"Of course he did," Rosalina laughed as the newlyweds moved their way towards them.

"What's up short stuff?" Thomas said to the two. "I meant your mom, not you buddy."

"You look tired, Chris," Kristina said, rubbing her hand on her nephew's back. "You think you can come dance with me for a little bit? I think you might be better than your Uncle Tom."

"Okay," Chris said quietly as Rosalina handed him over to Kristina, who wrapped her arms around him and hugged him close.

"I'm not that bad of a dancer, right?" Thomas asked Rosalina as they started to dance together.

"You're no Nat but you can hold your own," Rosalina told him. "Are you bummed about having to stay home this summer while everyone else is on the tour?"

"Definitely not how i expected to spend my first summer as a married couple," Thomas admitted. "But it's her job so she has to do it, just like i'll be doing my job here."

"Yeah I'm sure the football team will keep you busy enough," Rosalina laughed.

"That and taking your kid everywhere with me, I'm going to be a busy man," Thomas smiled, glancing over at Kristina and Chris dancing together.

"I never said you had to take him anywhere!" Rosalina exclaimed.

"You didn't because you are too stubborn to ask for help but I've already been instructed to overstep my boundaries and help out as much as possible." Thomas grinned.

"Nat?"

"Yes, but i've been catching more of the brunt from my wife over there," Thomas pointed his head towards Kristina. "She's worried about you being alone for the summer."

"I'm not alone, I have you!" Rosalina smirked, patting his chest. "I'll be fine though, I'm just worried Chris thinks his dad is abandoning him and I'd hate for him to feel like that. I should know, that feeling sucks."

"Chris will be just fine, he can come to practice with me everyday if he wants to!" Thomas said. "He will have more than enough men in his life to last him a lifetime."

"Hey R, I think he's running a fever," Kristina rushed over to her new husband and her best friend, her cheek up against his forehead.

"You want to go watch something on the iPad and cuddle up on those chairs?" Rosalina asked, earning a weak nod from her son. She took him from Kristina's arms and laid him back down where he was laying before. "We will go home after Daddy's done playing, alright?"

"Okay,"Chris said quietly before nodding off to sleep. She sat down next to him and watched as Nat and Alex transition to another song. She caught Nat's eye and smiled at him, earning her a smile back with a wave. God, she was really going to miss that man.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"I'm having second thoughts about leaving," Nat told Rosalina the next morning as he was rushing to finish his packing. Rosalina was sitting in the living room as he gathered items from all over the apartment.

"Nat, stop," Rosalina pleaded, already sad her husband is leaving for three months. She didn't need him talking like he was. "You are going, end of story."

"But Chris is sick!" Nat argued.

"Yeah because he's a 4 year old boy who probably ate his weight in sweets last night," Rosalina said. "I can take care of it."

"But you'll be all alone, what if something happens?" Nat asked.

"I'll be alone for a week until Thomas comes home, I will be fine, alright?" Rosalina promised him.

"I still don't know about this," Nat sighed.

"Ugh Nat!" Rosalina groaned as he walked out of the room. Their front door opened and Kristina and Thomas walked in without Rosalina realizing. "You're pissing me off!"

"Bad time?" Kristina asked as her and Thomas joined Rosalina in the living room.

"He's being an idiot," Rosalina rolled her eyes. "Are you two headed off to Hawaii?"

"Yes just stopped by to say our goodbyes," Thomas said. "Where's the boy?"

"In bed, he's still pretty sick," Rosalina sighed. "But I'm sure a little video games with his uncle would make his day."

"Well I can't argue with that," Thomas laughed, heading up the stairs.

"What's going on with Nat?" Kristina got straight to the point.

"He doesn't want to leave because Chris is sick," Rosalina explained. "I wish he would realize him saying stuff like he's not going just makes me more upset. It's toying with my heart strings. I've prepared myself for him to leave so I just want him to go so I can get the goodbye over with."

"You're sure you are going to be fine?" Kristina asked. "Because I can tell Coop I can't do it."

"I'll be fine!" Rosalina exclaimed. "You just need to go on your honeymoon and have the best time in the world. And then you need to go take care of my husband and I'll take care of yours. Does that sound alright, Mrs. Batuello?"

"Man, do I like the sound of that," Kristina couldn't contain her smile. "I am going to miss you though. We haven't been away from each other for this long in like our entire friendship."

"It's three months, we can do it." Rosalina assured her best friend. "Chris is going to miss you so much though."

"I'm trying not to think about how much he's going to grow when I'm gone," Kristina whined. "He's like my own child."

"Speaking of that, when are you getting pregnant? I'm ready for my own little niece or nephew to spoil rotten." Rosalina smiled.

"Thomas wants to enjoy it being just us for awhile so not anytime soon." Kristina sighed. "But I'm hoping this vacation will change his mind."

"Look who I got out of bed," Thomas announced as he walked down the stairs with Chris in his arms.

"I need a hug and a kiss, pronto young man," Kristina demanded, taking the young boy into her arms and squeezing him tightly. "I'm going to miss you so much this summer, buddy."

"Can't you stay home and play with me, Auntie Kris?" Chris asked quietly.

"I wish I could, but Uncle Thomas will be home next week and you guys can play all the video games you want all summer!" Kristina told him. "And I won't even be here to stop you guys!"

"Yay!" Chris exclaimed, high fiving Thomas. He wrapped his arms around Kristina neck one more time before getting handed off to his mom.

"I love you," Kristina told him, kissing his forehead. She then turned to Rosalina as she put Chris down. "And I love you more."

"Have fun and call me everyday," Rosalina told her, giving her a huge hug. "Take care of Nat, okay?"

"Like he's my own," Kristina winked as Nat walked down the stairs.

"You lovebirds leaving already?" Nat asked as he set his suitcase down at the end of the stairs. "We're not too far behind you."

"Have a good tour man," Thomas gave Nat a bro hug. "Take care of my girl."

"You better take care of mine then," Nat smiled. "I'll see you in a week, Kris. Better bring us some presents when you join us."

"You wish," Kristina laughed. "Alright baby, let's go. I'm ready to get to paradise!"

"Bye you guys," Thomas waved as he and Kristina walked towards the door.

"Bye," Chris said softly, his eyes welling up with tears. Kristina's eyes weren't dry either as she blew him a kiss before shutting the door behind her. He latched onto Nat's leg tightly and started to cry. "Why do you have to leave Daddy?"

"It's my job, son." Nat told him, kneeling down to be on his son's eye level. "But I promise you that we will talk everyday and Aunt Kristina will send you a ton of videos of me and Uncle Alex performing. And then at the end of the summer, you're going to come see me and we're going to go to Disneyland!"

"I don't want you to go," Chris sobbed, throwing his arms around his dad's frame. Nat hugged his son tightly, trying to keep himself from crying as well. He looked up and saw his wife tearing up at their son so upset.

"Who's ready to hit the road?" Alex exclaimed as he entered the apartment. Immediately, he noticed his family's sadness and toned down his enthusiasm. He put his arm around Rosalina and pulled her into a hug. "It'll be okay."

"It's hard to see him this upset," Rosalina whispered, wiping the tears out of her eyes. "Hey baby, why don't you give your Uncle Al a hug goodbye. They have to get going."

"Bye Uncle Al," Chris was still crying as his uncle picked him up and spun him around.

"You be good for you Mom while we're gone, you hear?" Alex told him. "I love you buddy."

"I love you too," Chris hugged him tight as Rosalina found her way to Nat, wrapping her arms around his stomach.

"I love you Rosalina," He told her quietly. "We can do this."

"I know we can, I just wish we didn't have to." Rosalina pressed a kiss to his lips. "Enjoy your sold out tour, rockstar."

"Goodbye Daddy," Chris hugged his dad one last time before being scooped up into Rosalina's arms. Nat kissed both of their foreheads before picking up his suitcase.

"It'll be over before you know it," Nat told them as he headed towards the door. "I love you."

"Love you too," Rosalina and Chris both said, waving as Nat and Alex headed out the door.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"Come on baby, you've barely gotten out of bed all day, what's been going on with you?" Rosalina asked Chris a few days later. He uncovered his head just enough to reveal his face. His tired brown puppy dog eyes looked at his mom. She was sucked right in and started to scratch his head, something he was a sucker for.

"I'm tired, Mommy," He sighed, leaning into his mom and closing his eyes.

"You've been tired for almost a week," Rosalina said. "Your teachers keep telling me all you do at school is sleep most of the day. Are you sure nothing else is wrong?"

"I don't know," Chris muttered as he fell back asleep. Rosalina sat there for a few minutes, watching him sleep before her phone started to ring. She pulled it from her pocket and saw a picture of her and Kristina fill the screen. She smiled in relief, knowing that her best friend had finally arrived on tour with the boys. She slid her finger across the screen and put the phone up to her ear, moving to watch her son from the doorway.

"Hey," Rosalina sighed in relief. "I miss you, I'm glad you finally have phone service!"

"I miss you too, and believe me, I think I'm more glad. I definitely need to vent to you after saying goodbye to Thomas for the summer." Kristina said.

"Hold up on the sad stuff, tell me about the honeymoon!" Rosalina gushed.

"It was beautiful, he's amazing, and now he's on a plane back to New York and I'm sitting backstage in some random city hours before the show crying about how much I miss him." Kristina started to cry. "It's going to be okay, right?"

"Yes, it's going to be okay. We're all going to get through this summer and everything will be just fine," Rosalina said, her eyes still locked on her sleeping son with worry. "I'll pick Thomas up when he gets in, middle of the night most likely."

"He said he'll take a cab so you don't have to keep Chris up all night," Kristina explained.

"No no, it's fine. I think Chris could use a little pick me up from his uncle right about now," Rosalina told her.

"Man I miss him, put the little man on the phone!" Kristina said. "How's he been?"

"He's asleep right now but I know he misses you too," Rosalina said. "And he's been great, better than ever."

"Well I've got to go, Cooper's been texting me constantly since I got here and I should probably grace him with my presence. I'll send you videos of the show and talk to you later, you sure you're okay R?"

"I'm fine Kris, have fun. I love you." Rosalina told her, trying to mentally stop the tears from falling from her eyes.

"I love you too," Kristina said before hanging up the phone.

Later that night, Rosalina was sipping on coffee while waiting in the airport baggage claim for Thomas. She didn't feel comfortable enough leaving Chris alone with a babysitter, especially because he had only ever been alone with someone in their group of friends. That was the plus side to him having so many aunts and uncles around, someone could always take him at the drop of a hat. Chris was sleeping in her lap, dressed in one of their old NBB tour t-shirts that was too big for him and flannel pajama pants. She constantly kept putting her hand on his forehead, checking to see if he still had a fever, which he had been running since the night of Thomas and Kristina's wedding. His skin was progressively getting more pale as the day went on, leading Rosalina to get more worried. She glanced at her phone one more time to see if Nat had called. He usually called right after the show but since he was on the other side of the country, he may have held off tonight. Of course, on the one night Rosalina wanted to talk to him the most.

"Something just isn't right with you, Christopher Alexander, and I wish your dad was home to help me figure this out," Rosalina muttered to herself, kissing Chris's forehead.

"Rosalina!" THomas yelled from across the room. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of his tall, still slightly gawky frame make his way towards her. His normally buzzed head had grown out a little bit and his skin was tanned from the Hawaiian sun. He had his duffel bag thrown over his shoulder and a stuffed lion in a Hawaiian shirt in his hand. Rosalina moved Chris off her lap and stood up to hug Thomas. She started to cry when he pulled her into his large frame. "What's wrong? Come on, talk to me. What's going on?"

"It's Chris, I think something's really wrong with him," Rosalina sobbed into his chest. "He's sick."

"Let's go to the hospital then," Thomas said, breaking their hug and reaching down to pick up his nephew. He held onto the boy tight and put his other arm around Rosalina, leading her out the door. He looked down and noticed a worried look on Rosalina's face. "It's gonna be okay, nothing's gonna be messing with this kid."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"I hate this place," Rosalina muttered as she and Thomas sat in the ER triage center, waiting for the doctor to come in to see Chris. The boy was laying on the hospital bed, cuddled up with the stuffed lion Thomas brought home for him. He hadn't woken up yet since they picked Thomas up from the airport, which was worrying Rosalina.

"We've spent too much time here," Thomas shook his head, thinking back to Rosalina's car accident in high school and Nat's shooting at the wedding. Chris started to stir and wake up, looking over at Thomas and smiling when he realized who it was.

"Uncle Thomas?" Chris asked drowsily.

"Hey buddy," Thomas smiled warmly as Chris crawled towards the end of the bed, being welcomed into his uncle's arms. "I heard you haven't been feeling too good."

"Where am I?" Chris asked, panickly looking around his surroundings. "Mommy?"

"We just came to see the nice doctor to see if they can get you some medicine to make you feel better," Rosalina explained, pushing back his curly hair and feeling his burning forehead. Chris relaxed against Thomas's chest and closed his eyes again.

"Have you talked to Kristina yet?" Thomas asked quietly, causing Rosalina to smile. "Oh who am I kidding, of course you have."

"She called me when you left, she gushed all about how it was the most perfect time of her life. Way to go Batuello, you turned into a real Prince Charming," Rosalina laughed. "Even after all the teasing you put me through when we were kids."

"People change, especially for the right people," Thomas replied. "You're still Poopalina to me though."

"Man do I wish that nickname would go away," Rosalina shook her head, glancing down at her phone to check for any messages from Nat.

"Have you talked to Nat about this? You know, bringing him to the hospital and all this," THomas asked, as if he was reading her mind.

"No I haven't talked to him all day," Rosalina said quietly. "They've been so busy that we usually can only talk for a little bit and I haven't wanted to ruin those precious minutes with worrying him about Chris."

"But what if it's something he needs to be worried about?" Thomas asked.

"Then I can handle it on my own," Rosalina said confidently.

"Not on your own," Thomas looked over at her, putting his arm around the back of her chair. "You've got me."

"Thanks," Rosalina smiled appreciatively, stroking her son's hair as he slept against Thomas.

"Mrs. Wolff," The doctor said as he entered the tiny room. "Oh and Mr. Wolff, sorry about that."

"I'm just his uncle, Thomas," Thomas stuck his hand out and shook it with the doctor's hand.

"I'm Dr. Lewis. Okay, we're going to take some blood and take it to the labs," He explained, putting his hand on Chris's back. "Hey there buddy, just need to do some tests."

"Like school tests? Yuck," Chris groaned as he opened his eyes and looked at his doctor.

"Just a quick poke or two," Dr. Lewis promised, lifting Chris from Thomas's lap and setting him on the bed. "This is a pretty cool lion, kid."

"Thanks, did you get this for me Uncle Tom? This is cool," Chris admired his new stuffed friend with a smile, though his eyes still looked tired.

"Sure did buddy, your Auntie Kris picked it out," Thomas smiled, giving him a thumbs up.

"Is this going to hurt?" Chris turned to Rosalina, fear in his eyes as Dr. Lewis got closer to him with the needle.

"Little pinch, you can take it," Rosalina told him, grabbing his hand as he squeezed tight. Chris looked to his uncle, who smiled encouragingly. Dr. Lewis stuck the needle into Chris's arm and his face strained as he was trying to hold back the tears.

"All done buddy, I'll be back in a little bit." Dr Lewis patted Chris's leg. "I'm gonna talk to your mom outside for a minute."

"I'm be back baby, why don't you tell Uncle Tom about our week?" Rosalina prompt, kissing Chris's forehead as she followed the doctor out of the room, patting Thomas's shoulder as she passed him out the door. "What's going on? What's wrong with him?"

"I'm still trying to piece it together, I may be back in a little to take him down for a bone marrow test," Dr Lewis explained.

"Wait this is that serious?" Rosalina asked, concern in her voice.

"Where is your husband? Out of town in assuming?" Dr Lewis asked.

"He's on tour right now, just left last week with his brother and all of our friends," Rosalina said. "He doesn't know we're here right now, I didn't want to worry him until l knew what was wrong."

"You may want to call him and have him come home," Dr Lewis warned her. "I don't know what's going on yet but I do know that boy is going to need his daddy, and you'll need your husband."

"Is everything okay?" Thomas asked as he joined Rosalina and Dr. Lewis. He looked down and saw Rosalina's stone cold expression on her face and turned to the doctor.

"I need a little bit more time but we will figure this out," Dr. Lewis promised. "Having family around at this time is very important, for all of you. I'll be back in a little bit for the bone marrow test."

"Thank you," Rosalina said, turning to Thomas as the doctor walked away. "Something's really wrong. I can't believe this."

"We need to call them," Thomas told her. "Cooper, Kris, Nat, any of them. Dave and Q will need to know."

"Let's just wait on telling everyone, I don't want to jump until conclusions until I know," Rosalina said, her hands shaking and her eyes filled with tears. "This is going to break Nat apart. I don't want to ruin this tour for them."

"Hey come here," Thomas soothed, pulling her into him. "I think you need to call Kris."

"She'll know what to do, right?" Rosalina sobbed. Thomas pulled his phone out of his pocket and held down the speed dial to call his new wife. He put the phone to his ear while still hold his arm around Rosalina.

"Hi babe, no I'm okay. I got home okay. Uhh Rosalina needs to talk to you, here hold on," Thomas said, handing the phone off to Rosalina.

"Hello?" Rosalina cried into the phone.

"What's wrong R? Talk to me, why are you crying?" Kristina said on the other side of the phone.

"Something's wrong with my baby and I'm so scared," Rosalina sobbed, hoping Kristina could solve all the problems from the other side of the country.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Rosalina, breathe, okay? I'm trying to find somewhere quiet." Kristina said on the other line. Rosalina could hear commotion in the background and she knew the show had just finished. "Okay, I'm outside, now what's going on?"

"Chris has been sick since the wedding and I thought it was just the flu or his sinuses but I started to get worried. He's not his normal self, all he does is sleep and he constantly has a fever." ROsalina explained, pacing the hallway. THomas had gone back inside to sit with Chris. "So when Thomas landed, I told him and he said we should bring him to the ER so we did and they have to run blood tests and bone marrow test and I don't know what's going on and I'm scared!"

"Does Nat know?" Kristina peered in the door and watched Nat and Alex laughing as they packed up their stuff.

"I can't bring myself to tell him, he'll come home right away and this is his dream!" Rosalina said.

"This tour may be his dream but you, you're his dream girl. And having you and Chris is his ultimate dream," Kristina told her. "You can wait until the tests come back and you know something is wrong, but you need to tell him. This tour is nothing if your baby is sick."

"Okay, alright," Rosalina sighed. "I wish you were here."

"Me too R, me too," Kristina said. "Is he awake? Can I FaceTime him?"

"Yeah, hold on," Rosalina said, pushing a few buttons on her phone, causing Kristina's face to appear. She smiled instantly at the sight of Rosalina's face. Rosalina wiped the tears off her face and took a deep breath, entering Chris's room. "Hey baby, you've got a phone call."

"Who is it?" Chris asked weakly, propped up by some pillows and covered by Thomas's hoodie, buried in blankets with his stuffed lion tucked under his arm. Rosalina smiled as she handed the phone to him and he looked at the screen. His mouth grew wide and he started to smile a real smile for the first time since Nat had left. "Auntie Kris!"

"Hi little man! Boy, did I miss that smile!" Kristina gushed, waving like crazy. "I heard you're not feeling too well, huh?"

"The doctor had to take shots and I didn't even cry," Chris said with a slight smile. "Uncle Thomas gave me this lion and it made me strong."

"I'm glad you like the lion, I miss you!" Kristina said, tears started to roll down her face. Hearing Kristina cry made her heart hurt, knowing her son didn't have his family here in his time of need.

"Why are you crying?" Chris asked matter a factly, which made Rosalina and Kristina tear up even more.

"I just wish I was there with you while you were sick, that's all," Kristina told him. "But I know you're going to be a tough little boy because you're my godson, and my godson is the strongest little dude I know."

"I love you Auntie Krissy," Chris smiled, blowing a kiss.

"I love you more baby boy, now can you give the phone to Mommy really quick," Kristina said as Chris handed the phone to his mom.

"You can do this, I won't tell Nat anything yet so you can tell him," Kristina said quietly. "WIpe those tears off, you're the strongest person I know. You can do this. Let me talk to Thomas, alright? And have him go out in the hallway. I love you."

"I love you too," Rosalina told her. She handed the phone to Thomas, who stepped out in the hall.

"Hey baby, you look hot!" Thomas winked, making her blush. "I miss you already."

"I miss you so much, is this really as bad as Rosalina said it is?" Kristina asked, worry in her voice.

"It's not looking good, the doctor should be back soon with test results and to take his bone marrow," Thomas explained. "Talk about crappy timing, huh?"

"I'm going to get on a plane, I'm coming home," Kristina decided. "I'm going to tell them that I'm flying to LA to scout for music video locations, I don't want to worry them yet. Knowing Nat, he'll cancel the tour right away without knowing anything else. Don't tell Rosalina I'm going home, she'll tell me not to but I have to. I'm going to catch the next flight home, I'll grab a cab to come straight there, okay?"

"Are you sure? I can take care of them," Thomas told her, running his hand through his short hair.

"I know you can, but who's going to take care of you?" Kristina slightly smiled. "I love you."

"I love you wifey, see you soon," Thomas hung up the phone and took a deep breath. He walked back in the room and handed the phone to Rosalina. "You've got to call Nat, at least tell him he's been sick. You can say it's the flu or whatever but we can't just drop a bomb on him if it gets that bad."

"You're right," Rosalina sighed, grabbing her phone and stepping out in the hallway. She inhaled and dialed his number, her hands shaking as it rang.

"Rosie! What's up baby girl?" Nat said ecstatically. Rosalina could tell he had been drinking. "I miss you so much."

"I miss you too, I need to tell you…" Rosalina started to say but Nat cut her off.

"How's my boy? Being good I hope?" Nat asked.

"That's what I'm calling about, he's been sick for a few days so I brought him to urgent care. It's probably not anything but I just wanted to tell you," Rosalina lied.

"What is it? Like a fever or something?" Nat asked, starting to panic.

"Yeah it's probably just the flu or something, I don't want you to worry! Focus on the tour and the music and have a blast." Rosalina told him. "How's it been? I haven't talked to you much."

"It's a dream come true, getting to do this every night just like when we were kids, I couldn't ask for anything more," Nat gushed. "Well, it'd be even better if my beautiful wife and my awesome son were here with me."

"I'm proud of you, Nat Wolff," Rosalina told him. "I love you so much."

"I love you too Rosalina, are you sure things are okay back home?" Nat asked.

"I've got it under control, now go spread your wings and have the time of your life rockstar." Rosalina could hear him smiling at the line he said to her way back when they were just stupid kids in love. "And when you're done, your family will be waiting."

"I'm counting down the minutes,"


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"I'm getting impatient," Rosalina muttered to Thomas hours later. Chris had gone down to get a bone marrow test and had returned back to his tiny room, sleeping ever since. He was curled up with his stuffed lion with Thomas's sweatshirt drowning him.

"They said it would take awhile, why don't you try and get some sleep?" Thomas suggested, propping his legs up onto Chris's hospital bed. "You've been up for over 24 hours."

"I can't sleep, I'm too nervous," Rosalina sighed, burying her head in her hands. She started spinning her wedding ring on her finger, something she did when she was nervous or anxious. "Did I do the right thing in not telling Nat?"

"I think so, you know how he is Rosie," Thomas said. "Remember that one time you went home sick in high school, the flu or something. He skipped the rest of the day, cancelled band practice, and came straight to your house to take care of you. He's Nat Wolff, he'd drop the world from his hands if something was wrong with you or Chris, or any of us for that matter."

"You're right, you're right, curse his need to be a good person," Rosalina chuckled. Dr. Lewis walked in with a file in his hand and Rosalina and Thomas stood to greet him. "Dr. Lewis, finally. How did the tests go?"

"I'm afraid I have some bad news," Dr. Lewis started to say. Rosalina could feel Thomas's hand on her back for comfort but her whole body went numb. "Chris has acute lymphocytic leukemia. It's a type of cancer of the blood and bone marrow. It is the most common cancer in children and in many cases is highly curable so I'm optimistic for a full remission from your boy. But for now, we're going to admit him and move him up to the pediatrics floor where he will stay until we get him onto a course of treatment. You should get ahold of your husband, your family. That little boy will need some support."

"Excuse me, I'll...I'll be right back," Rosalina stuttered, pushing past Dr. Lewis and running down the hallway.

"I'm sorry, she must be in shock," Thomas started to apologize.

"No problem, it's not exactly the easiest thing to hear," Dr. Lewis said. "I'll start the paperwork now to get him moved upstairs."

"Alright great, thank you sir," Thomas said gratefully, patting the doctor's back as he ran out into the hallway looking for Rosalina.

"Thomas!" He heard a woman shout from the opposite end of the hallway. He saw a woman running towards him, her long black hair tied up in a bun on the top of her head and she was drowning in an old Amigos High Wrestling sweatshirt and yoga pants. He sighed in relief when he saw it was his wife. He opened his arms wide and embraced her into a tight hug, lifting her off the ground. "How is he?"

"It's cancer babe," Thomas struggled to say the words, tears welling up in his deep brown eyes. "Acute lymphocytic leukemia, Rosalina ran from the room as soon as the doctor told us. I don't know where she went."

"I'll go find her, you stay with Chris," Kristina ordered, putting her hands on his face and pulling him into a kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too," Thomas wiped the tears from his eyes and kissed his wife's forehead. He could tell she was doing everything in her to keep herself from breaking down in the middle of the hallway. kristina took off down the familiar hallway, the same one they were in when Nat was shot four years before. She found a bathroom door and pushed it open, hoping Rosalina would hide out in the same bathroom as 4 years before.

"Rosalina?" Kristina said quietly, her voice echoing off the tile walls and floors. She found her best friend hovered against the wall, her head buried in between her knees sobbing. She looked up and her face was in pure shock when she realized Kristina was standing in front of her.

"Kris…" Rosalina cried even harder as she tried to form the words to tell rosalina what had happened. Kristina grabbed Rosalinas hands and pulled her onto her feet, wrapping her arms around her sobbing frame.

"I know boo, I know," Kristina soothed, rubbing her back as she felt her sob into her shoulder. "I'm here now, it's okay."

"What are you doing here? You should be with the boys on tour?" Rosalina said in hitched breaths, trying to calm herself down.

"You needed me here so I'm here," Kristina pulled away slightly to look into Rosalina's eyes and nodded her head. "I could hear the fear in your voice when I talked to you, I jumped on the next plane. I'm here to do whatever you need me to do, you hear me?"

"Yeah," rosalina nodded, wiping her eyes on the sleeve of her sweatshirt. "How do I make this better for him? He could die, my baby could die."

"Hey hold on, he is not gonna die. My godson is the strongest kid ever, he has you and nat as parents." Kristina told her. "And the best way to make this better for him is to have him surrounded by people he loves. He needs his family: me, Thomas, Alex, his uncles and aunts, and you and Nat."

"You're right, I know you're right," Rosalina told herself. "I'm so glad you're here Kris."

"I'm always here for you," Kristina forced a smile, kissing Rosalina's forehead. "You need to call Nat though."

"This is going to ruin him," Rosalina sighed, pulling her phone from her pocket and dialing his number. Her hand started to shake and Kristina took it in hers and squeezing it tightly.

"Hey baby," Nat said on the other end. "Two calls in one day? To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Nat...hi...umm, I need to tell you something," Rosalina stuttered, looking to Kristina for support. Kristina nodded her head in encouragement.

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" Nat's voice instantly turned serious when he heard the tone in his wife's voice.

"It's Chris, he...he has cancer Nat," Rosalina broke down into tears at the silence on Nat's end of the phone. "Nat, please say something."

"I'll be home as soon as I can, Al and I will head to the airport right now." Nat said in a stoic voice. "I love you Rosalina."

"I love you too Nat, please hurry," Rosalina cried, pressing the end call phone button and leaning her head onto Kristina's shoulders. "Please God, let him be okay."


	9. Chapter 9

Yes, I am back! It's been a year, I know. But I hope to start writing and finish this story, as well as many other one-shots I have started. I have been spending a lot of my writing time this past year working on a novel but I had to come back and keep writing this. So I hope you all enjoy!

Chapter 9

"Well at least this room is nice," Kristina commented on Chris's new room on the pediatric floor. "Sure beats those rooms down in the ICU where you and Nat both were."

"I'd still rather be at home," Rosalina sighed as she watched Thomas and Chris fool around with the gaming system installed in every pediatric room. Kristina grabbed her arm and squeezed tightly.

"I know R, me too," Kristina told her. "Have you heard anything from Nat?"

"He should be getting in pretty soon, we agreed we would tell Chris together, I'm just not sure how to tell a 4 year old that he might die," Rosalina said blankly.

"I don't think there's an easy way," Kristina said. "He just needs to know he's not alone in this and that he has a chance, he needs to be surrounded by positivity."

"But I feel the opposite of that, I feel like nothing is in me anymore Kris," Rosalina confessed.

"I know you're going to be tired of hearing me say this but you just need to be positive," Kristina repeated. She noticed Rosalina glancing around the room, her eyes filled with tears. "C'mon, let's go for a walk."

"Fine," They two headed out of the room and walked through the rest of the pediatric unit. Rosalina glanced into the rooms and saw tons of children, all probably here for a variety of reasons. "You know, they make this floor the brightest and happiest looking one in the hospital but all I can feel when looking at all of this is just the deepest sadness. These kids have such much more life to live."

"They do, and they will have that life. They just have a little more in their way," Kristina comforted, linking her arm in Rosalina's. They headed down the stairs at the end of the hallway and made their way to the main floor of the hospital. Rosalina could tell Kristina was guiding her towards the cafeteria and she was secretly thankful to have her there to take care of her. Kristina slowed her walk as they arrived at the main catwalk of the hospital, overlooking the gigantic windows on either side. "Remember this?"

"After Nat was shot, the crowds of fans out there was incredible," Rosalina leaned over the railing. "They were all so supportive, that love was just so empowering."

"And as soon as this news breaks, which you and I sadly know will happen sooner rather than later, I know those NBB fans will be here strong again because not only do they love you and Nat, they love Chris even more." Kristina said. "I mean, let's be real, the number of Instagram likes you get on a picture with him in it almost double pictures of you and Nat."

"That is pretty true, I mean you can't blame them, he is an adorable kid, those curly locks," Rosalina giggled, then sighed with realization. "Oh my god, the chemo, his hair is going to fall out."

"We can shave it, get it done with early so it's not so depressing," Kristina suggested. "It'll grow back."

"Rosalina!" A voice called from the end of the catwalk. Rosalina turned to see a man standing in jeans and a Lakers sweatshirt. His hair a mess and 5 o'clock shadow present on his face. His eyes were bloodshot and his face looked tired. But she didn't care what he looked like, she was just thankful he was here. She took off running and jumped into her husband's arms.

"Thank god you are here," She whispered, trying to contain herself from bursting into tears. Nat didn't say anything in return, just holding her tight, rubbing circles on her back.

"Are you okay?" Nat asked as they broke apart, putting both his hands on his wife's face.

"I'm better now that you're here," She said in relief, pulling him into another hug. "How are we going to do this?"

"Together," He said with a smile, obviously trying to lighten the mood. Rosalina felt another hand on her back and turned to see Alex standing there. She hugged him tightly, neither of them saying a word.

"WHat's going to happen with the tour?" Rosalina asked, looking from Alex to Nat, even glancing at Kristina.

"Don't worry about that right now," Nat told her. "It's not important."

"It is important guys," Rosalina insisted, looking at Alex for an answer.

"Well Cooper is working it out right now, he couldn't get on our flight so he's got a long wait at the airport for his flight later. He's got lots of calls to make. They're cancelling the tour." Alex told her.

"No, no," Rosalina said, hitting his chest. "This was the big break for you two."

"He's going to try and see if any of the venues will put a TBA on the show, like we can go back when it's a better time," Alex further explained. "But it's not likely."

"I'm so sorry boys," Rosalina sighed, on the verge of tears.

"Babe it's okay, there are more important things going on," Nat assured her. "But we need to talk about what we want to report out to the media."

"Right, right," Rosalina looked to Kristina. "What do you think, Kris?"

"I think you guys should just keep it simple, your son has leukemia, don't mention any specifics. The tour will be cancelled to give Nat and Alex time to spend with their family. They hope to reschedule any dates when possible and ask for your thoughts and prayers for their family and friends during this difficult time." Kristina spewed this press release near perfectly, her being a publicist coming in handy. She looked to Nat and Rosalina for confirmation.

"That's perfect Kris, you'll get with Cooper about it?" Nat asked.

"I'll call him right now," Kristina assured. "Go see your son."

"I'm so glad you guys are all here now," Rosalina said. "Oh my god, David and Qaasim, they don't know. I've got to call them."

"I'll call them," Alex told her. "You two should go see Chris, talk to him about all of this."

"Thank you, both of you," Nat said, guiding his wife back towards the stairs. As they walked closer to Chris's room, he could feel the tears in his eyes grow more and more. He stopped walking, causing Rosalina to stop as well.

"Babe? Are you okay?" Rosalina asked, seeing that Nat was crying.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here," He told her, wiping away the tears. Rosalina pulled herself into his chest.

"You're here now, that's all the matters,"


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"Daddy!" Chris exclaimed weakly from his hospital bed. Nat smiled at the sight of his son and hugged him tightly.

"Hi bud, I've missed you," Nat pulled apart only to hug Thomas. "Thank you dude, you are truly the best."

"Anything for you guys," Thomas patted his back. "I'll let you three be alone."

"Is the tour already over Dad?" Chris asked as Rosalina sat on the foot of the bed and Nat scooted up a chair.

"Um that's what we are going to talk about actually," Nat told him. "You know how you haven't been feeling well? Well the doctors told us that you have something called cancer, do you know what that is?"

"Bobby at school, his grandma had cancer," Chris replied. "She died."

"Oh well, that is sad but you are a lot stronger than Bobby's grandma and the doctor thinks that you will be able to beat the cancer," Nat told him. "It won't be very fun though."

"You're going to have to be staying here at the hospital for awhile but either me or Daddy will be here every night so you won't sleep alone." Rosalina explained. "And the medicine they are going to give you might make you very tired and sleepy. And your hair is also going to fall out."

"I don't want to lose my hair," Chris was at the point of tears.

"I know buddy, but Auntie Kris and I were talking and we thought we could just shave it off before it started to fall out." Rosalina said.

"Maybe it could even be a cool mohawk for a while, that sounds cool, huh?" Nat mentioned, his son's eyes growing wide. "Now that sounds like a plan."

"Knock knock," A new doctor walked in the room, accompanied by Dr. Lewis. "I'm Dr. Marisa Walker, the pediatric oncologist."

"I'm Nat Wolff and this is my wife, Rosalina," Nat shook her hand.

"And this must be Chris," Dr. Walker smiled. "I like your lion."

"Thank you," He softly smiled, his attention drifting onto the cartoons playing on TV.

"I'm going to talk with your parents outside, alright Chris?" Dr. Walker said. Chris just shrugged his shoulders, making the adults chuckle. "Your son is adorable."

"Thank you," Rosalina said as they entered the hallway. She could see Alex, Kristina, and Thomas sitting in the hallway and she waved slightly. "So what's the plan for Chris?"

"Well usually with his type of cancer, I'm going to refer to it as ALL because it's just easier, we start out with chemotherapy. If the cancer spreads, we will have to result to radiation. And if worse comes to worst, a stem cell transplant." Dr. Walker explained. "We will start chemo as early as tomorrow."

"How long into chemo until he starts to lose his hair?" Nat asked. "He's the most worried about that."

"About a week or so, we do suggest shaving it ahead of time. It seems to be easier on the children," Dr. Walker said. "Although looking at his head of hair, I think it's going to be difficult no matter what."

"Those were our thoughts as well so we are right on board with shaving it now," Rosalina laughed. "His hair rarely sees scissors, let alone clippers."

"You can see a nurse at the desk and they can get you everything you'll need," Dr. Walker checked her pager. "I've got to run but I'll check in with you all in the morning around 8 am before starting chemo."

"Sounds good, thank you so much." Nat shook her hand once more before she was off. Nat and Rosalina joined the rest of the gang in the waiting room.

"So I talked to David and Qaasim, and even though I know you two are going to tell them not to come, they're coming," Alex slightly smiled, earning him a glare from his brother and sister-in-law. "They care, you knew they would drop everything for you guys."

"And I talked with Cooper, he's still working on the shows and cancelling the tour. So I'm going to handle the press release. Press has already been contacting us and I've arranged at press conference downstairs for later today. I'll speak on your behalf as your publicist." Kristina explained.

"Oh and Alex and I will pick up Cooper, David, and Qaasim from the airport. They should all be arriving around 5 pm tonight." Thomas added.

"Wow I can't believe it, you guys are awesome," Rosalina hugged Kristina first, before Alex and Thomas.

"That woman we were talking with is Chris's new doctor, she said he's going to start chemo in the morning," Nat explained. "So tonight, probably right after dinner and right before a big dessert, we are going to shave his hair."

"God that hurts my heart," Alex sighed. He had much pride in how much his nephew looked like him as a child, mostly due to the curly locks.

"It should hopefully grow back after chemo though, right?" Thomas asked, his hand on ALex's shoulder.

"I hope so," Rosalina smiled. "You should go in there Al, he's really missed you. You too babe."

"I'll join you," Thomas said as the three men headed back towards the room.

"Rosalina…" Kristina could see the look in her best friend's eyes. She sat back down on the couch and pulled Rosalina down with her. Rosalina curled up into Kristina's body and started to cry. Kristina's arms engulfed her best friend and she started rubbing her back, her eyes tearing up as well.

"This is real, this is really happening," Rosalina sobbed, taking a deep breath to try and calm down.

"It is, and oh God do I wish it wasn't," Kristina said. "All we can do now is hope and pray. I don't want you to worry about a thing except Chris, okay? I'll take care of everything. Thomas already talked to your boss and you are free from summer school duties all together. I'm going to go home and grab clothes for you and Nat. Maybe some stuff from Chris's room, anything to make this place a little homier. I figured Qaasim and David could crash at your place, if not, they can sleep it ours of course. Is there anything else you want me to say at the press release?" Kristina babbled on and on. "I'm sorry, I'm going too fast."

"It's fine, the boys can stay at our place, I just went grocery shopping so the fridge is full. And if you could grab Chris's pillow and blanket, the one from our tour years ago. He loves that one, and some books too. And anything you want to say at the press release is fine, I trust you," Rosalina sat up a bit to look at Kristina. "I'm a little worried you're drowning yourself in all of this."

"I just want to make this easier for you and Nat," Kristina said. "Plus the planning and organizing and errands, it helps me deal, so please let me do it."

"You're the best," Rosalina pulled Kristina into a tight hug before kissing her cheek. "But please, after taking care of me, take care of yourself."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

"So, how is this for a last supper?" Nat asked Chris as they, along with Rosalina, sat in Chris's hospital room, chowing down on McDonald's Rosalina had snuck into the hospital.

"Delicious," Chris said, his mouth full of fries. ALthough his face was still pale and you could tell he was sickly, having his dad back in town perked up the boy's mood a bit.

"Oh look, there's Auntie Kris," Rosalina pointed the remote at the TV, turning the volume up at few notches. Kristina appeared on the screen from the press release happening just downstairs. She had put herself together, dressed professionally for the occasion.

"Thank you all for coming. I am Kristina Batuello, one of Nat and Alex Wolff's publicists and also a close personal friend of the Wolff family. Nat and Alex's tour has been postponed to further notice, with plans to make up as many tour dates as possible. Nat's son, Christopher Wolff, has just been diagnosed with a type of childhood leukemia and Nat and Alex find it important that they are with their son/nephew at this time. The Wolff family asks for your thoughts, prayers, and support through this difficult time. Ticket sales will be refunded in the case a rescheduled date cannot be scheduled. Thank you for your time." Kristina didn't give the crowd of reporters any time to ask questions as she walked away from the podium.

"That was cool," Chris stated. "I've never seen Auntie Kris on TV before, only Daddy and Uncle Al."

"We all used to be on TV, all of your aunts and uncles, and Mommy too," Nat said with a slight smile. "We even had our own TV show."

"No way!" Chris exclaimed. The little boy of course knew all about the Naked Brothers Band but had no idea how much of a worldwide phenomenon they were.

"Yes way, maybe we will watch some during your chemo," Rosalina suggested, with Chris greeting her with a huge smile and grin.

Meanwhile, Thomas and Alex were waiting for the rest of the gang at the airport. The two of them were currently also shoving their faces with food from the bar at the airport.

"Man, isn't my wife hot?" Thomas smirked at Alex after the press release ended.

"I'm still not used to you having a wife, you're a husband dude," Alex chuckled. "Soon enough you'll be Daddy Thomas."

"Whoa buddy, let's give that a little bit of time," Thomas said. "Although Kristina is thinking quite the opposite of that."

"C'mon you love Chris, you don't want one of those for yourself?" Alex asked.

"Well of course I do, but I can't guarantee my kid is going to be as perfect as him," Thomas said. An announcement went over the speakers announcing the arrival of the flight from Detroit, which all three boys had a layover in. "That's them, we better get going."

"Don't think we're done discussing this," Alex smiled as they both threw money of the table to cover their meals before heading towards the gate.

"The boys are back," Thomas exclaimed as David, Qaasim, and Cooper stepped into the terminal.

"Long time, no see," David joked, hugging his best friend and then moving onto hugging Alex.

"I still can't believe this is happening," Cooper shook his head after the group of men exchanged handshakes and tight hugs.

"How's little man doing?" Qaasim asked.

"Well we are remaining hopeful," Thomas answered. "We're going to shave his head tonight, before the chemo makes the hair fall out."

"God, he's probably freaked out about that, huh?" David asked, then looked at Alex. "And you too dude, that hair is your nephew/uncle thing."

"Yeah, it breaks my heart," Alex sighed. "I wish I could shave my head so he didn't have to."

"Huh? Really?" Cooper asked. Alex looked at him with a strange look. "Well the agent and publicist in me was thinking, I don't know, why don't we all shave our heads. As a solitude to little man, to show him how much we love him."

"I'm down," Thomas shrugged, running his hand through his buzzcut.

"Me too, my hair was getting a little too floppy for my liking anyway," David said, referring to his more adult hairstyle in comparison to his teenage shaggy hair. THey all then looked to Qaasim and Alex.

"God, well, Grace has been pestering me to get rid of the dreads, I guess this is worth it," Qaasim sighed. "So, you in Al?"

"Let's do it before I change my mind,"

Later that night…

"Hey, look at me," Kristina said to Chris. She was holding her phone up to take a picture of him. "I want one last picture before your awesome haircut."

"Why don't you be in the picture with me?" Chris asked, melting Kristina's heart. She snuggled up next to him in the tiny hospital bed and held her phone out to take a selfie of them. Both of them were wearing wide smiles and Chris's eyes were squinted he was smiling so hard.

"That was perfect," Kristina kissed his forehead as he snuggled up into her body. Nat and Rosalina were sitting at the table by the window, going over insurance and medical forms to sign before tomorrow. A knock came from the door and Thomas walked in first, his head freshly shaved. "Baby, your hair!"

"Well you know, I figured Chris shouldn't be the only one getting a haircut today," Thomas smiled, as the rest of the boys walked in the room.

"Oh my god," Nat, Rosalina, and Kristina all said in varying degrees. Thomas was probably the most comfortable with no hair while David was wearing a Yankees hat backwards. Cooper too was wearing a baseball hat, an old NBB one from a past tour. Qaasim was wearing a fedora while Alex was sporting an all too familiar red, white, and blue do rag.

"Whoa, you guys look cool with no hair!" Chris exclaimed, exchanging high fives and hugs with his uncles.

"I'm so glad you guys are here," Rosalina jumped to her feet, hugging both David and Qaasim at the same time. Nat stood up as well, embracing Cooper in a hug.

"I cannot believe my eyes, Alex Wolff with no hair," Nat smiled before turning to his son. "You've got the best uncles in the world buddy, I've never seen any of them with this little hair."

"C'mon guys, get a picture with Chris before the haircut," Kristina instructed as the guys all gathered around the hospital bed, all smiles towards Kristina's phone.

"We even brought you a present too," Alex smiled, handing his nephew a red, white, and blue do rag just like his. "Your Uncle Al rocked the crap outta these when he was your age."

"Alright buddy, are you ready?" Rosalina asked, tears already in her eyes. Her son slightly nodded his head as she picked him up, hugging him tight, and put him in a chair, careful not to tug on his IV line.

"Can I do it?" Alex asked, turning to his brother. Nat responded with a pat on the back and a smile, handing Alex the clippers. Alex took the clippers to his hair, even though everyone in the room could see the hurt in his eyes. Rosalina leaned into Nat and he kissed her forehead, both crying. Thomas had his arms wrapped around Kristina from behind and tears were in both of their eyes. Cooper was taking pictures because even if no one wanted to admit it, this was an important moment. But it made this moment a little better that everyone was there.


	12. Chapter 12

"I can't believe you got Nat to leave for a bit," Kristina said as her and Rosalina were sitting across from each other at the small table in Chris's hospital room.

"It was good for him to get out of here for a bit, blow off some steam tackling some high schoolers," Rosalina chuckled, referring to Thomas's football practice she forced the boys to all go to instead of lingering in the hospital. "Plus, he was here all day for chemo and Chris is going to sleep for awhile anyway so he's not missing anything."

"You deserve a break too, you know." Kristina told her.

"I'm fine Kris," Rosalina said, avoiding eye contact with Kristina by looking over at a sleeping Chris in his bed. His hair was in a mohawk, although they were going to shave the rest of it soon, and the do rag Alex had given him.

"You and I both know that's bullshit," Kristina raised her eyebrow. She focused back on her computer, scrolling through her Twitter mentions. "So many fans are tweeting old videos of us as kids, it's kind of unreal."

"Yeah? I told Chris that we could watch some of the old documentaries, I mean not much else for him to do in here," Rosalina said. "I figured he would like to see all of us back in our prime rockstar days."

"Look at this video," Kristina smiled, clicking on a link that opened up a new tab on YouTube. It was a video Cooper had taken of the group of them at prom one year, right after Rosalina's accident. The group of them were all dancing and singing. "Life was so different back then."

"Sometimes I miss those days, my only worry being if Nat was going to talk to me at rehearsal," Rosalina laughed. "And now there's bills, a job, my son with cancer. Being an adult is hard."

"One thing I'm grateful for as we've all grown up, that we never changed from those kids in the rock band, we still are the best group of friends," Kristina smiled as she showed Rosalina a picture of them all at the premiere. They all had their arms around each other and we're taking a bow after their performance. Nat had his arms around Rosalina and Kristina on either side but his smile was focused on Rosalina. "Look at that face, some things never change after all these years."

"And I thank God everyday for that," Rosalina smiled as a picture of Nat and Alex appeared on the screen. They were young, probably Silver Boulders age. Nat had his arm around his brother's neck and Alex's hair looked just like Chris's, both smiling their no teeth smiles. "God Chris looks just like Alex when he was little."

"He sure does," Kristina said, clicking their more pictures and stopping on one of Thomas, David, and Qaasim. They had to be about 11, their arms hanging around each other's necks and their feet dangling of the stage at the studio. They were all grinning bright smiles, which brought a smile to Kristina's face. "I wish I would have known them back then, especially Thomas."

"They were such assholes," Rosalina smiled as the next picture that popped up was of them with her, them all hugging her tightly. "But they always loved me, they just showed it in different ways."

"What are you guys doing?" A voice from across the room asked. The girls turned to see Chris rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"We were just looking at pictures of me and Daddy and all of your aunts and uncles from when we were little," Rosalina explained, smiling as she sat next to him in his bed. "Do you want to see?"

"Okay," Chris shrugged. Kristina hooked her TV up to the computer and continued to through the hard drive Cooper had given her with all the pictures from the gang, dating back to the early days of NBB in the bathtub. A picture of the boys all came up from the day they all wrestled each other. "Why do they all look so silly?"

"Well you see, your uncles all thought they could beat me at wrestling," Rosalina smiled at the thought of that day. "And well, I won."

"Whoa whoa whoa, back it up, we LET you win!" Thomas exclaimed as he led the group of guys into the room, their hands full of fast food bags. "Don't believe your mom for one second kid, she's lying."

"Um I believe there's video evidence," Kristina clicked play on a video and a slip of Nat and Rosalina played, ending with her pinning him down.

"Dad, you let Momma beat you up," Chris smiled.

"You're right, I let her win," Nat winked at his wife, while sitting on the other side of Chris's bed. The rest of the gang started to fill the room in various tables and chairs they had corralled in there over the past few days. "So are we taking a trip down memory lane or what?"

"Look at this gem," Kristina stumbled upon a picture of the gang in New Orleans, all dressed in their formal gear. Nat and Rosalina were hand in hand, newly into their relationship.

"Why aren't you in any of these pictures, Auntie Kris?" Chris asked.

"Well, I wasn't in the band yet so I didn't know Mommy or Daddy or anyone yet," Kristina explained. "Although I was a fan of their music."

"Let's find a picture with Auntie Kris in it," Thomas took the laptop from his wife and started scrolling through pictures, stopping on a picture of Rosalina and Kristina newly after their friendship began, their arms thrown around each other with smiles on their faces.

"You guys look happy," Chris stated.

"We were," Rosalina reminisced. "We were all always happy when we got to hangout together."

"Find some Natalina pictures!" Alex called from across the room, making the rest of the room chuckle at their couple nickname. THomas continued to scroll and stopped on video of Nat singing to Rosalina outside her bedroom. "God I remember that, it was so cold that night."

"I know this song!" Chris's face perked up. "Daddy wrote this for Momma."

"13 year old me was super romantic," Nat joked, glancing over at his wife, whose eyes were glued to the screen with a smile on her face. He reached his arm behind Chris and put his arm around them both. On the screen, Rosalina smiled down in surprise from her bedroom window on Nat and the boys singing "Your Smile" to her.

"I love you," Rosalina mouthed to Nat, looking over at him with a smile and tears in her eyes.

"Always have, always will," He mouthed back, his hand stroking her shoulder.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"But what if something happens?" Rosalina asked Kristina in a panic. It was nearly two weeks since Chris had started chemo and little to no change had been seen. The two were out in the hall arguing.

"Then I will call you right away!" Kristina responded. "You and Nat haven't had any alone time in two weeks, you need a night out."

"But Chris needs us," Rosalina argued. Her eyes were tired and she was clearly worn out.

"He will have me and all of his uncles here, he will be okay, I promise!" Kristina said. "I'm not taking no for an answer and Nat's already on board. In fact, turn around."

"Nat…" Rosalina turned around and saw her handsome husband in a suit and tie. He smiled as he handed her a garment bag. He leaned in and kissed her. "You look handsome."

"Put this dress on, go get ready. Everything you need should be in there." Nat told her, ignoring the skeptical look on her face "We need this, Rosalina. Kristina and all of the guys will be here, along with all of the nurses and doctors in this hospital. The boy will be fine."

"Okay, okay," Rosalina sighed, pulling Kristina towards the bathroom. "If I have to make myself look pretty, you're doing my hair."

"Fine by me!" Kristina exclaimed as they went into the bathroom in Chris's room.

30 minutes later…

"Alright babe," Rosalina said, emerging from the bathroom in a white sundress and heels. Kristina had curled her hair and done her makeup for the first time since Chris's diagnosis. "Let's do this."

"Wow…" Nat's jaw dropped a little, then formed a grin. "You look stunning."

"Crazy what brushing your hair and some mascara can do," Rosalina shrugged, sitting down next to Chris on his bed. "Dad and I are going on a date for a little bit but Auntie Kris and all of your uncles will be here with you."

"Okay," Chris said as Rosalina and Nat both kissed his forehead before heading towards the door. "Mommy, you look pretty."

"Thanks buddy," She smiled as Nat took her head and lead her out the door.

Later that night…

"This restaurant is so fancy," Rosalina commented, taking a sip of her wine. "We could never go here with Chris."

"Hey I love our kid and all, but let's make a deal." Nat said. "No talking about Chris, or cancer, or the hospital. I just want to have a stress free night with my beautiful wife."

"Okay, I can do that," Rosalina nodded her head in agreement. A band started playing a country song in the background. "Live music, remember when you and Al did that for a bit?"

"I liked doing it, something so intimate about such a small place like this," Nat said. "So much different than the stadium shows."

"But you rock the stadium shows," Rosalina smiled.

"They were better with you on stage with me," Nat grinned his classic smile. "Do you ever miss it?"

"Yeah but watching from the crowd isn't too bad," Rosalina shrugged her shoulders. "I do miss playing guitar or bass though, and writing with you."

"Hey that can always change, maybe you can get back in the studio and co write with me," Nat suggested excitedly, although Rosalina still looked unsure. "Oh come on babe, it would be fun."

"Maybe, you know after all of this…" Rosalina said, glancing down at her purse where her phone was.

"Rosie…" Nat scolded.

"Just one text, please?" Rosalina pleaded. Nat sighed and nodded, throwing his hand in the air. Rosalina pulled out her phone and smiled at something on the screen. She turned to show Nat. It was a text from Kristina, including a picture of Chris with all of his uncles crowded around his bed with them all putting up ones. The caption of the picture was, "because I know you can't stop worrying, put the phone away and enjoy your husband xoxo."

"Now that you know he's okay, will you put the phone away?" Nat asked, putting his hands together in a plead.

"Yes," She smiled as she shoved it back in her purse. The band began to play Thomas Rhett's "Die a Happy Man." "I love this song."

"Dance with me," Nat stood up, holding out his hand to his wife. He led her to the dance floor and wrapped his arms around her waist as her hands wrapped around his neck. They two didn't speak, just moved around the dance floor at their own pace.

"I love you more than words can describe Nat Wolff," Rosalina whispered to him as they danced. "You are the best partner I could have through all of this."

"I'm the lucky one, you have been amazing through all of this. I am so proud of how strong you are being for our son, for me, for our family. You make me a happy man Rosalina Wolff," Nat smiled, kissing her forehead.

"I know I can't control any of this happening, but I'm so sorry the tour got cancelled. I know it was everything to you and Alex." Rosalina said to him.

"Oh if all I got is your hand in my hand, baby I could die a happy man," Nat sang the lyrics to her, making her blush and smile.

"Almost 20 years later and you serenading me still makes me blush," Rosalina shook her head before pulling him into a long kiss. "I love you."

"You're a saint, you're a goddess, the cutest, the hottest, a masterpiece. It's too good to be true, nothing better than you in my wildest dreams," Nat continued to sing to her, holding one of Rosalina's hands in his own and pressing his forehead against hers, their lips inches from each other. "I'm never gonna stop singing to you."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Rosalina grinned, wrapping her arms around Nat's neck. "Thank you for tonight, I didn't realize how much I needed this."

"Thank Kristina, she suggested it," Nat was interrupted by Rosalina's hand in his pocket, pulling out his phone. She opened his camera and held the phone up in the air, pressing her face against Nat's. Their faces shined bright grins, something that hadn't been seen from either of them in weeks. She typed a quick message to Kristina that said, "Thank you for looking out for us. xoxo N and R," and sent the selfie along with it. She put the phone back in Nat's pocket and wrapped her arms around his torso.

"So, you want to go back to our place, maybe fool around a little?" Rosalina looked up at Nat with a smirk. His eyes lit up and he started nodding his head. He quickly threw some money on the table and took Rosalina's hand, leading her to the car. He stooped before opening her door for her and pulled her into a deep kiss, his one hand behind her head and his other leaning on the car. They pulled apart, both out of breath.

"All these years and you still take my breath away,"


	14. Chapter 14

Thanks for all the love on the last chapter! I will forsure try to get some more Natalina into these chapters!

Chapter 14

"We're still hopeful, but I think moving towards radiation and even looking for a stem cell transport would be the smartest plan of action," Dr. Walker explained to Nat and Rosalina in the hallway weeks later. "So getting anyone you know that would be interested in donating to get tested to see if they're a match would be a great proactive step."

"We will look into that right away, all of us," Nat replied. "Please keep us up to date with anything else."

"Of course, I'll check in with Chris tomorrow before starting radiation," Dr. Walker gave a comforting smile before walking away. Rosalina sighed and leaned into Nat's frame, his arms wrapped around her.

"Well you and I should probably get tested, Alex too," Nat said, rubbing his hand up and down her back.

"Yeah, yeah we can check with the nurse about that," Rosalina muttered. She squinted her eyes towards the waiting room at two women talking at the front desk. "Is that...is that Victoria and Grace?"

"Rosalina! Nat!" The two women yelled from down the hallway, running towards the couple. They each embraced with one, then switching to the other.

"You guys, you guys didn't have to come," Rosalina said.

"Yes we did, we wanted to be here sooner but we didn't want to interfere on family time," Victoria explained.

"Oh come on, you guys are family," Nat told them. "Thank you for coming though, I'm sure the guys have missed you."

"We've missed them too, I can't believe those haircuts!" Grace exclaimed. "They should would do anything for that boy. We all would."

"Yeah he's pretty lucky," Rosalina slightly smiled. "You guys should get in there, Chris should be awake and would love to see you."

"Well we can't let the boy down," Victoria shrugged and smiled as the two headed into the room. Nat and Rosalina remained in the hallway, Nat leaned up against the wall with Rosalina leaning into him. Nat rested his chin on Rosalina's head as they stood in silence, still reflecting on Dr. Walker's news.

"What's with the long faces?" Thomas asked the couple as he, Kristina, Alex, and Juanita came walking back from the coffee stand. "Didn't you see Victoria and Grace?"

"Yeah...yeah," Rosalina struggled to string a sentence together, looking at Nat for support.

"Dr. Walker just informed us they're moving onto radiation and that we should start looking for a stem cell donor match…" Nat explained. "Just in case."

"Test me," Alex quickly said.

"Me too," Kristina nodded. Thomas and Juanita also nodded their heads. "There's a ton of us, one of us has got to be a match."

"I'll go in there and tell the rest of the gang, no one will question it for a second," Thomas told them both before walking into the hospital room.

"It's going to be okay, bro," Alex patted his brother's back and smiled sincerely at his sister-in-law before heading into the room with Juanita. Kristina still remained in the hallway, her hands holding onto Rosalina's arm in a sign of comfort. The three of them followed them into the room, which was quiet for the amount of people in it.

"Why the long faces?" Cooper asked the group as they walked in. "Oh come on guys, one of us is bound to be a match."

"But what if we're not? Do you know how hard it is to find a stem cell match?" Rosalina asked him, emotion running through her voice.

"We need to boost the morale around here, get us all in good spirits," Cooper stated. "I've been thinking, why don't we do a benefit concert?"

"Come on Coop, we don't need money, we just need Chris to be better," Nat shook his head at the idea.

"No, the money would go towards childhood leukemia, and we would promote becoming a donor. It doesn't even have to be a stem cell donor but any kind. It's a simple box to check on your driver's license that can save a lot of lives," Cooper explained. "We could do it in town here, so Chris could come. I mean I hate to make him the poster child for all of this but it would do a lot of good and it sure would boost the spirits of us all. What do you guys think? Nat, Rosie?"

"I think, I think it would be great," Rosalina said, looking up at Nat for a response. "What do you think?"

"On one condition, it's not a Nat and Alex Wolff show," Nat said, earning him weird looks from the room. "We do it as the Naked Brothers Band."

"I'm sure that can be arranged," Cooper grinned, looking at the faces in the room. "Are you guys down?"

"For this kid, anything," Thomas said, putting his hand on Chris's shoulder. David and Qaasim nodded in agreement, as well as Alex and Kristina. "What do you say, Rosalina? Ready to sing some high school love songs again."

"Anything to be back with family again," Rosalina smiled slightly. "What do you think Chris? Want to see the Naked Brothers Band back together on stage for the first time in your lifetime?"

"Would I get to go?" Chris asked weakly.

"Your picture won't be on the posters for nothing," Cooper winked. "I'm sure you're Uncle Coop and Aunt Patty will be able to pull some strings with Dr. Walker to get you out of this place for awhile."

"Sweet," Chris smiled a closed lip smile, just like his uncle and father did.

"I suppose we should start making some calls," Patty smiled a little bit and headed out into the hall.

"Rehearsal tonight, the girls and Patty will stay here with Chris. The Naked Brothers Band is back, ladies and gentleman," Cooper smirked a bit before following his girlfriend into the hallway. His comment earned smiles, cheers, hugs, and high fives from those remaining in the room.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

"Another round guys, let's go!" Cooper yelled two weeks later. The gang was in their old studio, which was seeing a lot more activity than it was used to. Their old instruments were dusted off and had been in full use in preparation for the benefit concert. A camera crew had set up shop off stage, taking pictures of the gang to use for promotion.

"Ugh again?" Thomas groaned, setting down his cello and tugging on his tie to loosen it. "Why can't they just use old pictures of us?"

"Well, it's been 10 years since all 7 of you have done a promo shoot so, no we cannot use old pictures," Cooper lectured as the gang all freshened up to prepare for another round of pictures. "This round will be a little low key, more candid pictures. So freshen up and we'll start in about 5 minutes."

"God, I forgot how stressful this whole being in a band thing is," Rosalina sighed as her and Kristina plopped down in their old dressing room, sprawling out on the couch.

"Well we were young back then," Kristina said. "And you know, not dealing with cancer."

"I feel bad not being at the hospital as much these two weeks," Rosalina confessed. "Especially with this radiation, it's really taking a toll on him."

"Hey, you are there for every treatment, he's asleep by the time we leave for rehearsal every night and the girls are pampering him with all the books and head rubs and slurpees he could ask for," Kristina said. "And this is all for him R, he is going to love to see his rockstar mom and dad on stage, singing all these songs he grew up hearing us sing him to bed to and sing in the car driving to that lake we all love."

"I hope so," Rosalina forced a smiled. "We better get out there before Mr. Naggy comes in here and grabs us."

"Make sure we get some good pictures of me and you," Kristina reminded as they headed back out to the set. "I want some to hang up in my future house."

"I better get a house before you," Rosalina teased, hip bumping her best friend. Her eyes grew worried when she saw Victoria, Grace, and Juanita talking with Cooper. "Um what are they doing here?"

"Ah there you two are," Cooper smiled, automatically reading Rosalina's worried expression. "I can tell you're already worried, the girls didn't leave Chris so don't start yelling."

"Well where is he?" Rosalina asked.

"Calm down Momma, the boy's right here," Nat smiled, emerging with Chris in his arms. Chris was dressed in the dress shirt and pants from Thomas and Kristina's wedding, although he looked like he was drowning in it a bit from the weight loss from chemo. ROsalina sighed in relief and kissed her son's forehead.

"Hi baby, you look so handsome," Rosalina smiled at him. "What are you doing here?"

"Aunties said we were going to take some pictures," Chris looked better than he had lately, it must have been one of his good days. His skin was still pale and his body looked fraile but his smile could still brighten up a room. "I even brought my do-rag."

"Kristina, Cooper, and I were talking about what we wanted to use as promos and we figured that Chris was necessary for that," Patty explained, patting Chris's back. "And it's a great reason for all of us to get some good family pictures taken."

"Well as long as he's up for it, which he looks like he is, let's get to it!" Rosalina exclaimed. The next few hours were spent in front of the camera. The photographer started with group shots of the 7 band members, arms around necks with smiles and bad ass sultry smirks. They then threw Chris in the mix, him in the arms of various members, hanging in between his parents by their necks. A few were taken with him behind Alex's drum set, playing away like he wasn't a kid with cancer. Alex joined in for a few pictures, showing his nephew the ropes. The photographer took several pictures of Nat, Rosalina, and Chris, wide smiles across all of their faces. Alex joined in on them as well as Juanita. Alex and Kristina took a godparent portrait with Chris, them both kissing his still chubby cheeks. The rest of the couples joined in on the action too, taking pictures together and with Chris, all to eventually be framed and hung in their home, and the studio. Cooper and Patty even got in on the action, taking pictures with the boy and Nat and Alex. But after the nearly thousands of pictures taken, the best one was easily settled. It was the whole gang, significant others and all, arms around each other and everyone was laughing and smiling for the first time in a long time. No one was directly smiling at the camera, all looking at each other. All except Chris, who had a wide grin from laughter, directly at the camera. He looked like a normal healthy kid, well except for that bald head, covered up with a red, white, and blue do-rag.

Later that day…

"He is cashed out," Nat said to Rosalina, patting her legs that were resting in his lap. They were back in Chris's hospital room and Chris was fast asleep in his bed, do-rag still on his head.

"It was quite an eventful day," Rosalina said, scrolling through the pictures from the day on her laptop. "I'm glad these pictures got taken. At first I was a little hesitant of having all of these reminders of this time in our lives but look at these, him and all his aunts and uncles, it's the happiest he has looked in a long time."

"I like this one," Nat said, pointing at a picture of Rosalina and Chris holding hands. "I'm going to put that one on my desk."

"He was like his old self today," Rosalina smiled. "Just my normal baby boy."

"He's the best kid," Nat said. "I've been trying to write a song, something related to all of this. But, it just isn't coming out the way I want."

"Well, play me something, maybe I can help," Rosalina suggested. Nat grabbed his guitar and Rosalina moved her legs off his lap. Nat started playing around on the guitar, strumming a few different cords. Once he got in a groove, Rosalina's eyes perked up. "What song is this? The one you're playing?"

"Um…" Nat continued to play, his fingers playing faster than his mind could think. "Forever Young, Bob Dylan."

"Yes, that's...that's perfect babe," Rosalina smiled. "I know it's not a song you wrote but it's perfect for Chris to know how much you love him."

"We," Nat corrected her with a grin. "Let's sing it together babe."

"Nat, I haven't sang in front of anyone in...god, years," Rosalina said. "I would sound terrible."

"Rosie, you have an amazing voice," Nat put his hand on his wife's leg. "Please do this with me."

"Okay, I will," Rosalina smiled at Nat. "You know, you make me a better person Nat Wolff."

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing about you," Nat leaned in and kissed his wife.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

"Alright, show's on in a few!" Cooper yelled backstage to the gang. Everyone was scattered around, doing their last minute preparations for the show to start. They all gathered in a circle, arms around each other like they did before every show as kids. But this time, the entire gang, significant others and all were included, but most importantly, Chris was sitting on his Uncle Alex's shoulder. Though the guys had all cut their hair weeks back, they all were sporting short locks still, all styled slightly similar. Chris still had no hair and covered his head with his no signature do rag. The band was all channelling younger versions of themselves for the show. Thomas wearing his old fedora he never took off his head, Qaasim wearing a snapback and David even opted for glasses over his contacts for the night. Nat was wearing a leather jacket, not the exact one from high school but close enough. Rosalina and Kristina had both curled their hair and looked stunning.

"We are more than ready for this guys, just like when we were kids, let's go out there and have the time of our lives," Nat spoke enthusiastically, throwing a wink towards his wife as a reference to their favorite line to say to each other. "Hands in, NBB on three. 1,2,3!"

"NBB" The gang all cheered together before rushing to their spots, but not before exchanging a high five, hug, or kiss with Chris. The stage was black and Alex started playing the drum intro for "Body I Occupy." Victoria, Grace, and Juanita headed to the sound booth with the escort of security.

"And in this body that I occupy," Nat sang into the mic as the lights started to flash on the stage. The crowd went wild at Nat singing the song he wrote as a 12 year old as a grown man. The band was rocking like they had never before. After the song, Nat breathed heavily into the mic as he pushed the sweat out of his face and into his hair. "Hello everyone, we are the Naked Brothers Band, back for one night for the best cause! We all personally wanted to thank you for coming, all proceeds from this event will be going towards childhood leukemia to fight for a cure. But enough of me talking, this next one is Illuminated."

The band played songs from all over their award winning discography, moving to Face in the Hall, then Mystery Girl, slowing it down to Thump Thump Thump and Changing. Alex had been at the mic for a few songs now and took some time to speak.

"This next one is a song I wrote at the prime age of 8 years old and I want to dedicate it to my nephew, Chris. Just know that you can be anything you want to be, CAW!" Alex winked towards the sound booth, where Chris's face lit up at his uncle. "This one's I Could Be."

After playing songs like Crazy Car, Girl of My Dreams, If you Can Make it Through the Rain, and Just a Girl I Know, Nat took a moment to talk to the crowd again.

"Wow, you guys have been awesome tonight. I just wanted to take a minute for some shoutouts. First, I wanted to thank our awesome managers, Cooper Pillot and Patty Scoggins for throwing this whole thing together and our publicist, the NBB's own bassist, Kristina Batuello, for promoting the event. I wanted to thank my best friends in the whole world for being here with me and Alex tonight and helping me relieve some of my favorite moments in my life here on this stage. As many of you know, Rosalina and I's son was diagnosed a couple of months ago with a type of leukemia. It has been a tough time for my wife and I as well as everyone you see on this stage so please keep us in your thoughts as we search for a potential stem cell donor for our boy. I encourage all of you to become a donor, it only takes a simple check on a box on your driver's license and it can save so many lives. This video is for him." Nat finished speaking and a video started to play on the large screens. On screen was a video taken the day Chris was born in the hospital. Alex was holding him and the rest of the gang was walking into the room.

"_Friends, I want you to meet my nephew, and godson, Christopher Alexander Wolff," Alex proudly showed off the newborn to his friends. Nat and Rosalina were sitting on the bed smiling on at their friends when the camera got closer to them._

__"_What do you guys want to say to the boy?" Cooper asked from behind the camera._

"_Well, son, whenever you see this, we just want you to know that we already love you more than anything in the world and that you were named after two of the best people we know, your Aunt Kristina and your Uncle Alex." Nat said to the camera, his arm resting around Rosalina._

"_And that whenever you're in trouble or feeling low, just know that everyone in this room is your family and they all love you." Rosalina said. "We love you Christopher."_

The video continue with video snippets of Chris's first year of life, including his first bath, him crawling, him laughing at Alex and Juanita, him sleeping in Nat's arms, his first steps, pictures with Alex and Kristina from his baptism, and so much more. Pictures of him running into David and Qaasim's arms at airports and kisses with his aunts. Another video started from Chris's second birthday party, he was sitting surrounded by a a mountain of presents. Kristina was the camera operator and she turned it aroud to face herself, adjusting the camera so Thomas fit in the frame as well.

"_Happy 2nd birthday Chris, Uncle Thomas and I love you so very much and we can't wait for you to open your present from us," Kristina said on camera. _

"_It's a football, no time better than the present to train you to be my starting quarterback in 12 years," Thomas winked with a smile. "You're the best kid around."_

More pictures and videos played of Chris and the gang interacting as he grew up, with "If You Can Make it Through the Rain," playing in the background. The video ended with a picture of Chris at Thomas and Kristina's wedding, only a week or so before his diagnosis. He was all smiles, curly hair a mess.

"This next song is one that Rosalina and I want to dedicate to our son." Nat smiled as Rosalina joined him at the front of the stage, both with their guitars.

"Daddy and I love you to the moon and back Christopher Alexander and you are the strongest little boy we know. We are so blessed to have you as our kid and this song is for you," Rosalina blew a kiss in Chris's direction. Her and Nat started to play "Forever Young."

_May God bless and keep you always  
May your wishes all come true  
May you always do for others  
And let others do for you  
May you build a ladder to the stars  
And climb on every rung  
May you stay forever young  
Forever young, forever young  
May you stay forever young._

_May you grow up to be righteous  
May you grow up to be true  
May you always know the truth  
And see the lights surrounding you  
May you always be courageous  
Stand upright and be strong  
May you stay forever young  
Forever young, forever young  
May you stay forever young._

_May your hands always be busy  
May your feet always be swift  
May you have a strong foundation  
When the winds of changes shift  
May your heart always be joyful  
And may your song always be sung  
May you stay forever young  
Forever young, forever young  
May you stay forever young._

The band played more classics like Eventually, Your Smile, and I Won't Love you Any Less before ending the night with If That's not love and I'm Out. After that last song, the seven of them stood at the front of the stage, full of sweat and smiles with their arms around each other, taking a bow for the last time. The crowd roared and cheered their names.

"Thank you all for coming out!" Nat yelled into his mic. "We are the Naked Brothers Band and for one more time, we're out!"


	17. Chapter 17

This chapter is kind of short but a necessary story filler. This story is coming to an end, probably only about 3 more chapters left. Thanks all for reading thus far and I will be starting a new story after this one, more on that to come!

Chapter 17

"How does this happen? How can we have our entire family tested and not a single one of us is a match?" Nat asked, frustration filling his voice in the hallway.

"Dude, a match is going to come through, I just know it," Alex told his brother. "They only just now started looking."

"It's just frustrating," Nat shook his head. "You know, if we were on tour right now, we'd be doing that weekend long stand at that awesome venue in LA. And then we'd be hitting up Disneyland for a few days. Chris was so excited."

"So he should get to go," Alex said. Nat looked at him with a skeptical look. "C'mon, it's worth a talk with the doctors."

"I don't know, I don't think Rosie would go for it," Nat shook his head.

"Well let's see," Alex poked his head into Chris's room and yelled in. "Rosalina, come here!"

"What's up?" Rosalina emerged from the room, with Kristina in tow.

"So, you know, at this time on the tour, we'd be starting that run in LA. And then we'd be taking the boy to Disneyland," Alex started to say but he could already see Rosalina's response in her face. "Before you say no, just think about it."

"No," Rosalina shook her head. "There is no way he can handle leaving the hospital let alone a place ride to California!"

"It's worth talking to Dr. Walker about!" Alex pleaded, looking to Kristina for support. "C'mon Kris, what do you think?"

"I think…." She looked at Rosalina. "The boy deserves some fun if he can get it. He's been trapped in this place for months. It's a couple days, he's a sitting duck anyway if we're waiting for a donor."

"Dr. Walker!" Alex called, waving at the doctor down the hall.

"What's going on? Chris still sleeping?" Dr. Walker asked.

"Nah he's eating dinner and engaged in a very intense Xbox game with his uncles," Alex said. "Listen, we had this trip planned for next week, to Disney. Ya know, his first time and all. I know all we're really doing right now is waiting on a donor so is it possible we could wait on a donor at Disneyland."

"He's just been through so much, Alex and I just really want to make this happen for him," Kristina added. "But Nat and Rosalina are skeptical."

"Normally I would say no," Dr. Walker started off saying. "But I know a great colleague at a hospital nearby there and I know she would be there in case of any emergencies. So, you have my blessing, take your son to the happiest place in the world. Lord knows this isn't it."

"Nat, R?" Kristina and Alex both looked hopefully at them, waiting for an answer. Nat looked at Rosalina, waiting for her to give the final answer.

"I guess we're going to Disneyland," Rosalina smiled slightly, causing Alex and Kristina to jump up and down with excitement.

"C'mon Nat, let's go tell him!" Alex grabbed his brother's arm and pulled him into the room. Kristina and Rosalina hung back in the hallway.

"You're not fully set on this," Kristina said, putting her arm around Rosalina's shoulders. Rosalina rested her head on her best friend's shoulder and sighed.

"Stop reading my mind," Rosalina grunted, her arms wrapping around Kristina's waist. "I just worry, you know my anxiety is skyrocketing with every damn day that passes."

"I do know that, and I try to do everything to make you feel better," Kristina consoled. "Chris needs this, to feel like a normal kid again. For you and Nat and him to feel like a normal family again. You want him to have every chance to be a normal kid while he is still strong enough."

"I do, I do," Rosalina said softly. Kristina held her in silence because sometimes that's all you need, your best friend's arms around you.

"It's going to be okay," Kristina whispered, kissing the side of Rosalina's head. She guided her towards to room. "Now let's celebrate this vacation."

"Momma, we're going to Disney?" Chris's head perked up when his mom and aunt walked in the room. Rosalina couldn't contain the smile on her face at her son's hopeful look on his face.

"Yeah buddy, we're going to Disney!" Rosalina exclaimed, holding back the tears in her eyes as the room erupted into cheers.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"Whoa," Chris's face said it all as the gang all walked through the front gates of Disneyland in California. Chris was being pushed in a wheelchair by Thomas and every single person in their group was wearing Mickey ears on their heads, Alex and Kristina's doing.

"So, where to first buddy?" Nat asked his son, crouching down in front of the wheelchair.

"Buzz Lightyear!" Chris pointed in the direction of Woody and Buzz, causing everyone to head in that direction. As the gang all charged forward, Nat and Rosalina hung back a bit. Nat's arm hung around Rosalina's shoulders and kissed her forehead.

"I'm glad we came," He murmured into her hair. Rosalina leaned into his tall lanky frame and wrapped her arms around him.

"Me too, he is so happy," Rosalina agreed. "I guess it's true about this place being the happiest place on Earth."

Later that night…

"He's passed out," Rosalina announced as she left Chris's room in the house the three of them, Alex and Juanita, and Thomas and Kristina were renting just off of Disney's property. "But still wearing the Mickey ears and Buzz Lightyear t-shirt, God forbid."

"He had quite a day," Nat said as Rosalina collapsed into his lap, cuddling up against him.

"We got some great pictures of him," Kristina was clicking through the pictures of their day at the park.

"It's been forever since we've been in LA," Rosalina said, gazing over Nat's shoulder and out the window.

"You guys should go out, you deserve a date night," Alex encouraged. "You know, you two never got that honeymoon."

"Yeah! You guys should go to the park for the night, spend some time together," Thomas agreed.

"I'm not even going to bother arguing with you guys anymore," Rosalina sighed, grabbing Nat's hand and pulling him up. "Let's go babe, I want to go ride some roller coasters."

"Well, that was easier than I thought," Kristina smiled as Nat and Rosalina headed out the door.

Later…

"Another beer, my dear," Rosalina came out of one of the bars in the park with two beers in hand, handing one to her husband. They had been making the rounds at the park, hitting nearly every bar there was, making them a little tipsy.

"Thank you," Nat smiled, taking the beer graciously and taking a long sip. He took her hand and interlaced their fingers. "It feels a little strange to be getting drunk at Disneyland."

"Well, my version of the happiest place on Earth would involve alcohol, lots of it," Rosalina cheesily smiled. "And lots and lots of you."

"Likewise," Nat smirked, pulling her by the hand into a small alleyway between gift shops. He leaned her up against the wall and pulled her into a deep kiss. His one hand still holding his half drunken beer and the other supporting himself against the wall. Rosalina's free hand found the back of his neck.

"I love you," Rosalina kissed him in between each word she spoke. "I want you to put another baby in me."

"Haha oh yeah?" Nat grinned at his tipsy wife as they both pulled away to finish off their beer. After tossing their cups on the ground, their hands found each other again. Nat's hands creeping up the bottom of Rosalina's tank top and her hands running through the hair on the back of his head.

"We've always talked about having another baby, I know timing is incredibly awful right now but I want another perfect baby with my very perfect husband," Rosalina slowed down her speaking at the end and Nat was clearly hanging on her every word.

"Well, I too want another baby that has your perfect little nose and that giant beautiful smile," Nat agreed, kissing Rosalina's nose. "How about we get to it when we get home?"

"You really mean it? You want to try for another baby?" Rosalina's face grew excited, her eyes squinted and her smile wide.

"Yes, yes I do Rosie," Nat smiled back, his smile met by Rosalina's hands on face pulling his lips into hers. The kiss got deeper and Rosalina's arms moved underneath Nat's t-shirt, her hands all over his toned chest. Nat's hands traveled to Rosalina's butt, lifting her into his arms.

"Babe, we probably should stop, you know? There are children, and paparazzi, everywhere," Rosalina breathed, pulling away from Nat as he set her back on her feet.

"Right, right," Nat agreed, running his hands through his hair. He grabbed Rosalina's hand and led her out of the alleyway and into the hustle and bustle of the park. Their hands swung in between each other, still buzzing from their heated interaction in the alleyway. They got into line for a roller coaster and Nat leaned up against the queue line metal barriers, Rosalina leaning up against him with her side.

"Nat…" Rosalina said quietly, not looking up at his face.

"Rosalina?" Nat responded, his chin resting on his wife's head.

"Promise me you'll never leave my side," Rosalina continued to look straight ahead, avoiding eye contact with Nat. "And if...and if Chris doesn't make it through this, you and I, you and I will make it through this."

"I promise," Nat said, his hand stroking Rosalina's shoulder comfortably. He had so many thoughts and things he wanted to say in response to Rosalina's proclamation but decided to avoid them all and just be there in the moment with her. "You were always my greatest prize pretty girl, I'm never leaving your side."

Rosalina's phone started to ring in her back pocket and she quickly pulled it out, seeing Kristina's face on the screen. She swiped on the screen, "Hi Kris, what's up...wait, what? Are you sure? Okay we'll...we'll meet you at the airport."

"What's wrong?" Nat's face turned to panic at the word airport.

"It's Chris, we need to go home right now, we're getting on the next flight back to New York."


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The Beatles were playing through the speakers in Nat and Rosalina's apartment, something that only happened when a sense of comfort was needed. The apartment was full of people, but felt empty as ever. Kristina and Juanita were cleaning up in the kitchen, doing dishes that had piled up for weeks while Alex and Thomas were trying to straighten up the apartment a bit. Cooper was sitting at the kitchen table, phone strapped to his ear.

"We're at the apartment now, trying to clean it up considering no one has really been here in months," Cooper said, taking his glasses off and rubbing his eyes. "They finally sent us home from the hospital, Nat and Rosalina didn't want him to spend his final days there. So now, we wait. I mean, it could be any day now...yeah there's still hope for a donor so we all need to keep praying. You guys should probably head back here, I know it's hard but we could lose him. Alright, talk to you later Dave, tell Q and the girls I send my love, bye."

"I'm gonna go check on them," Kristina said quietly, creeping up the spiral staircase and down the hall. She stopped just before Chris's bedroom when she heard the sounds of a guitar playing and then Nat's voice started to sing.

_Close your eyes,  
Have no fear,  
The monsters gone,  
He's on the run and your daddy's here,_

_Beautiful,  
Beautiful, beautiful,  
Beautiful Boy,_

_Before you go to sleep,  
Say a little prayer,  
Every day in every way,  
It's getting better and better,_

_Beautiful,  
Beautiful, beautiful,  
Beautiful Boy,_

_Out on the ocean sailing away,  
I can hardly wait,  
To see you to come of age,  
But I guess we'll both,  
Just have to be patient,  
Yes it's a long way to go,  
But in the meantime,_

_Before you cross the street,  
Take my hand,  
Life is just what happens to you,  
While your busy making other plans,_

_Beautiful,  
Beautiful, beautiful,  
Beautiful Boy,  
Darling,  
Darling,  
Darling Chris_

"Your mom and I love you so much buddy, and we know you are fighting so hard right now," Nat spoke so quietly but so sincerely as he sat on the foot of Chris's bed, where Chris was asleep. Rosalina sat next to him her head buried in her hands. Her hair was tied up in a big bun on her head and she was swimming in one of Nat's large hoodies and yoga pants. Kristina moved a bit into the doorway, offering her support if needed. Nat forced a smile when he noticed her standing there, looking at her best friend with worry. He waved her in with his head and Kristina joined them on the bed, putting her arms around Rosalina. Rosalina's head fell into Kristina's lap, her sobs growing louder and her arms locked around Kristina's knee.

"Hey, hey, he's still here," Kristina whispered to Rosalina, her hand rubbing her back soothingly. "There's still a chance guys, Chris is climbing up the donor list every minute."

"Look at him, he is falling apart," Rosalina cried, sitting up a bit and leaning her head onto Kristina's shoulder. Rosalina grabbed a picture from Chris's nightstand of Chris with Thomas, David, and Qaasim from his 4th birthday. Chris still had his head full of curly hair and was wearing a Yankees hat backwards while his three uncles crowded around him, faces full of smiles. "Look at him, this picture was taken less than a year ago. He looks like a completely different boy. He looks like my smiley, happy go lucky son, not this drained, empty looking kid."

"He will come back," Alex said confidently from the doorway. "Chris, my nephew, your son, he's the toughest kid around. He's been fighting this for months now and he hasn't given up just yet. We live through Rosalina getting hit by a car, Nat getting shot, this cancer has nothing on the Wolff family."

"Your positivity is something else, Al," Nat shook his head as his brother entered the room and patted his back.

"We're going to get this kid back," Alex proclaimed, pointing at another picture of Chris. The picture was taken when Chris was 3 at his first basketball game. He was the youngest one on the team and he swam in his jersey but Thomas insisted the sooner they got him into sports, the better. Kristina and Alex were kneeling on either side of their godson, their arms both around him. All three of them were throwing ones at the camera with serious looks on their faces. The sleeping Chris took a deep breath, startling the four of them. They all continued to watch Chris sleep, his tiny chest moving up and down proving he had some sort of life left in him. Alex sat on Nat's right on the bed, his arm around his big brother's neck. Rosalina sat to Nat's left, her hand in his with his thumb stroking her hand. Kristina sat to Rosalina's left, leaning into Rosalina's shoulder. It was silent in the room, just the faded sound of the Beatles playing downstairs and Chris's breathing. Suddenly, pounding started up the stairs and Thomas burst into the room, Rosalina's phone up to his ear.

"Guys, it's Dr. Walker, she said to get to the hospital right away," Thomas was gasping for air after running up the stairs. "I think they found a match."


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

2 months later…

"Hello beautiful," Nat snuck up behind Rosalina at her desk in the living room of the apartment. He hugged her from behind and kissed her neck. "What are you up to?"

"The donor emailed us, it's been the specific amount of time so we can contact them now." Rosalina explained, turning to face away from the computer. "She's only 19 and was at our concert. She said she was a few years behind us at Amigos and that the benefit concert convinced her to see if she was a match. It took awhile for the system to find her but it thankfully did."

"Yes, yes it did," Nat smiled. "Hey, you've got a new email."

"It's from...you?" Rosalina skeptically looked at her husband, who had a goofy grin on his face. She clicked open the email and a picture of a lakefront property appeared on the screen with the word, "Congratulations!" written in the subject line. "What is this? I recognize that house, it's on the lake we always go to."

"That, my gorgeous wife, is our very first house," Nat smiled at her. Rosalina's jaw dropped and tears started to flow into her eyes. "Say something!"

"I'm...I'm pregnant," Rosalina confessed, a smile growing on her face.

"Are you serious?" Nat exclaimed, a grin breaking out on his face as well. Rosalina nodded and Nat swept her into his arms, spinning her around in circles.

"So I'm taking you're happy about this?" Rosalina laughed as Nat set her back on her feet. He responded by pulling her into a long kiss, both his hands on her face.

"Ecstatic," Nat had tears in his eyes. "This is exactly what we needed after this hell of a past couple of months. Chris is going to be so excited."

"Let's not tell him yet, or anyone," Rosalina pleaded. "I want to tell Kristina first, I know she's been wanting a baby and I don't want to upset her. She's done so much for me these past couple months, I want to tell her first."

"I can be on board with that," Nat couldn't contain his smile. Rosalina wrapped her arms around him tightly. "I love you so much Rosie."

"Daddy!" The door swung open and Chris ran through the door with his Aunt Kristina in tow.

"Hi bud, how was your day with Auntie Kris?" Nat asked his son, who was looking more and more like his normal self every day. His hair wasn't fully back to it's pre cancer state but growing in curly as ever. He had gained some weight back but still was pretty thin. "Wait, before you tell me, give your mom a kiss."

"Hi Mom," Chris reached on his tiptoes to kiss Rosalina, who bent down to kiss him.

"Hey buddy, why don't you go upstairs with your dad and tell him all about our day," Kristina suggested.

"Okay," Chris shrugged, grabbing his dad's hand and pulling him up the stiars.

"Thanks for taking him today, he's been asking for some time with you," Rosalina said.

"We had a great day," Kristina smiled. "I...I've got something to tell you."

"What? Is everything okay? I swear to God if something is wrong, I don't know what I'll do. I cannot handle anymore medical disasters in this family," Rosalina started to ramble before stopping when she saw a smile on her best friend's face.

"No no, everything's fine, everything's great in fact," Kristina assured her. "I'm pregnant, R."

"You're...you're pregnant?" Rosalina cried, her hands covering her mouth. Kristina nodded, tears in her eyes as well. "Oh my god, Kris! You're gonna have a baby!"

"I am," Kristina grinned as Rosalina's arms wrapped around her neck in a hug. "You're the first person to know, well besides Thomas."

"How's he taking it? I know he wasn't for sure he was ready to be a dad so soon," Rosalina asked, withholding her own big news for just a few more minutes.

"He's actually very excited, I think spending all this time with Chris made him realize how much he can love a child," Kristina said. "He cried when I told him."

"Words can't explain how happy I am for you, after all you've done for me, and for Nat and Chris these past couple of months, you deserve this happy next step in your life," Rosalina told her. "I'm so glad our little newborns will get to grow up together."

"I know, I'm so excited...wait, newborn?" Kristina looked at Rosalina in confusion before it hit her. "Oh my god, you're pregnant too?"

"Yes," Rosalina grinned. "I don't mean to overshadow your news but I wanted you to know first. I just told Nat before you walked in."

"This isn't overshadowing at all, this is amazing news!" Kristina exclaimed wrapping her arms around Rosalina. "This is perfect, we have always dreamed of this."

"I guess everything happens for a reason," Rosalina couldn't hold back a grin. "Nat surprised me with a house, a house on the lake!"

"Shut up," Kristina's jaw dropped. "Soon that place will be running wild with NBB kids."

"What kids?" Chris asked with a confused look. Nat gritted his teeth and smiled apologetically.

"Um...well, Mommy and Auntie Kris, we're both going to have babies," Rosalina told him. "You're going to be a big brother and a cousin."

"Really?" Chris's eye grew wide and he hugged his mom and aunt at the same time. "I hope you have a boy Auntie Kris, so I can have someone to play basketball with. And Mommy, I hope you have a girl because I want a sister."

"Well I guess we'll see what happens," Rosalina said. "I'm happy you're excited and here to meet these little ones."

"Don't worry Momma, Auntie Kris, no one's going to be messing with those kids,"

THE END!

Thanks everyone for reading and reviewing! I enjoyed finishing out this trilogy and I will be writing another story, actually a 5th story onto my other series with "Sweet Summertime," "Falling Out," "Winterlust," and "Spring Forward." It's going to be called "One Last Time" and I have the first chapter almost done so look out for that one!


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